SEWING AN 

1 £j A 1 LLH 




MARY LMATTHEWS 




Copyright N°._ 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



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in 2011 with funding from 
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SEWING AND TEXTILES 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 

FIRST LESSONS 
FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS 



BY 



MARY LOCKWOOD MATTHEWS, B.S. 

n 

PROFESSOR OF HOME ECONOMICS AND HEAD OF THE 

DEPARTMENT OF HOME ECONOMICS IN 

PURDUE UNIVERSITY 



NON-REFERT 




£qWVAD ; QHS 



BOSTON 

LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY 

1921 



tt 






Copyright, 1921, 
By Little, Brown, and Company. 

All rights reserved 



NortoonU ^frcss 

Set up and electrotyped by J. S. Gushing Co, 

Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



MAR 25 1921 
©CU611311 



PREFACE 

This volume is intended for use in places beginning 
the study of sewing and textiles. It has been 
arranged for use in the elementary schools and does 
not presuppose any training in general science. It is 
strictly an elementary treatment of the subject. 

The book deals with the selection of clothing 
and garment-making. Garments are made, the com- 
mercial patterns being used. The lessons in tex- 
tiles are correlated with the lessons in garment- 
making by studying, in the class, the materials that 
are being used in the laboratory. The hygiene of 
clothing, and the clothing budget, are discussed 
when the dress is the laboratory problem. Through 
the Home Problems, the home and school work may 
be correlated. 

Attention is called to the insertion of material for 
the use of the modern " project method." Many 
teachers will find that this makes the plan of the book 
more attractive and practicable. It need not dis- 
turb the work of the teacher who prefers the longer 
established ways of teaching. 

The author acknowledges the help given in 
illustrating the book by the United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture, The United States Bureau of 
Standards, Cheney Brothers, The Linen Thread 
Company, and Landers, Frary and Clark. The 
author also gratefully acknowledges the criticisms 
and suggestions of educators who kindly read the 
manuscript. 



TO THE STUDENT 

Have you thought about what you will do when 
you finish school ? 

Perhaps you have decided to be a teacher, a 
librarian, a stenographer, a doctor, a nurse. Perhaps 
you are making plans to take a course in high school 
or college that will fit you for one of these callings ; 
you would not consider yourself capable of entering 
any of them without training. 

Very probably you will be at some time the 
manager of a home. Have you thought about the 
importance of being trained for home-making? 

It is only within the past twenty-five years that 
it has been considered proper for the public schools 
to train girls for the work which most of them will 
do for the longest period in their fives, the work of 
home-making. 

Mrs. Ellen H. Richards was the first to say that 
the schools ought to teach "right living;" and, 
largely through her efforts and her inspiration, plans 
have been worked out whereby girls while in school 
can be taught many things about right living. 

Right living begins with the home. Who makes 
the home? The man may furnish the money to 
build and maintain the house, but it is the woman 
who plans and manages the home. It is her busi- 
ness to see that the family lives in a sanitary and an 
attractive house ; that every member of the family 



viii TO THE STUDENT 

has clean, properly selected and well cooked food ; 
that every one is suitably clothed ; that the family 
income is wisely spent, and that all in the home are 
helped to lead a happy and useful life. 

No girl should consider the making and managing 
of a" home an easy piece of work, for in fact nothing 
is harder to do and to do well. 

When the girl takes work in school and college 
that covers all phases of home-making, we say that 
she is taking a course in Home Economics. 



SUGGESTIONS 

When planning a course in Home Economics for 
any school it is essential that the teacher should 
know from what kind of homes the students come, 
what is the average income of the families of these 
girls, what nationalities they represent, what is 
the social life of the neighborhood. It is impracti- 
cable to follow any textbook, page by page, without 
first knowing whether the lesson-plans suit the 
students to whom they are presented. When the 
teacher knows the neighborhood, she can wisely 
select and arrange the parts of the book to be 
assigned. 

The lessons in Sewing and Textiles are planned 
with the garment as the project, with many problems 
to be studied which lead to its completion. It is 
advisable always to have a plain practical garment 
as the project, rather than an elaborate one involving 
a great deal of hand-work. Any school teaching 
sewing in the seventh and eighth grades should have 
its laboratories equipped with sewing-machines. 

The book is divided into sections instead of lessons, 
thus giving the teacher the opportunity to use as 
much or as little as is desired at any one time, since 
the amount of time allowed for Home Economics 
varies greatly in different schools. 

The "Home Problems and Questions" may 
furnish material for lessons if plenty of time is 
allotted to this course, or may be used only as work 
to be done outside of class hours. 



x SUGGESTIONS 

Illustrations and exhibit material that can be se- 
cured will help to make the work more interesting. 
The following firms furnish "school exhibits" that 
will be found useful : J. Wiss & Sons Company, 15-33 
Littleton Ave., Newark, N. J., scissors; W. H. 
Compton Shear Company, 307-309 Bergen St., 
Newark, N. J., scissors ; S. B. & B. W. Fleisher, 25th 
& Reed Sts., Philadelphia, Pa., "Wool Processes" 
($1.00) ; Cheney Brothers, Fourth Ave. & 18th St., 
New York City, silk exhibit and booklets, "The 
Story of Silk" and "Glossary of Silk Terms"; 
Pacific Mills, Lawrence, Mass., cotton exhibit 
and wool exhibit ; Belding Brothers & Company, 
Belding, Mich., booklet, "Silk Culture and Manu- 
facture, Shown Progressively" (50 cents plus post- 
age), and silk exhibit ($2.50 plus postage) ; Corti- 
celli Silk Mills, Florence, Mass., book, "Silk, Its 
Origin, Culture and Manufacture" (50 cents), wall 
card, "How Silk is Made" (20 cents), box contain- 
ing silk cocoons (5 cents), silk-culture cabinet 
($1.25). 

In addition to the reference-books that should be 
found in the school library there are bulletins which 
are very valuable as reference material. Write to 
the following addresses and ask that publications 
be sent to you and that your name be put on their 
permanent mailing-list : Division of Home Econom- 
ics, Bureau of Education, Washington, D. C. ; 
Children's Bureau, Department of Labor, Wash- 
ington, D. C. ; Department of Agriculture, Wash- 
ington, D. C. ; United States Public Health Service, 
Treasury Department, Washington, D. C. ; Federal 
Board for Vocational Education, Washington, D. C. ; 
all State universities and agricultural colleges; 



SUGGESTIONS xi 

American Home Economics Association, 1211 
Cathedral Street, Baltimore, Md., "The Journal 
of Home Economics" ($2 per year). In writing to 
the Department of Agriculture ask also for a list of 
Farmers' Bulletins and for publications issued by the 
Office of Home Economics. 



CONTENTS 



Preface . . • • 

To the Student 

Suggestions 

List of Illustrations .... 

Preliminary Lessons 

The Sewing-basket .... 
Implements for the Sewing-basket 

Project I — The Sewing-apron 
Materials for the Sewing-apron . 
Stitches to Use in Making the Apron 
A Piece of Cloth .... 

Ginghams 

Cotton 

How Cotton Cloth is Made 

Project II — The Nightgown 

Cotton Materials Commonly Used for Underwear 
The Sewing-machine .... 
Other Cotton Materials 
Facts about Lace . 

Dyeing 

How Cotton Materials are Adulterated 
Ribbons to Use in Underwear . 
How Silk Materials are Made . 

Project III — The Gift Towel 

Towels 

How Flax is Grown .... 

The Making of Linen Cloth 

Some Linon Fabrics .... 



v 
vii 

ix 

xv 

3 
6 

10 

12 
15 
18 
22 
28 

. 32 
. 36 
. 40 
43,46 
. 49 
. 52 
. 55 
59, 62 



67 
70 

72 
75 



XIV 



CONTENTS 



Project IV — The Underslip 
Wool : Where it Comes From 
How Cloth is Made from Wool . 
Wool Materials Commonly Used 
Embroidery to Use on Underwear 
Knitted Underwear and Stockings 
The Cost of Clothing . 
The Care of Clothing . 
Removing Stains 
Healthful Clothing . 

Project V — -The Wash Dress 
Selecting a Wash Dress 
The Becoming Dress . 
Appropriate Clothing . 
Some Points for the Consumer . 
Some Textile Tests 



Project VI — Christmas Gifts 
Index 



80 

83 

87 

90 

96 

101 

106 

110 

114 



120 
126 
129 
132 
139 

144 

149 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



Measuring to Find the Amount of Material Needed for 
the Nightgown Frontispiece 



Good Types of Shears and Scissors . 
Pages from the Booklet on "The Sewing-basket 
Three Types of Basting .... 
Method of Making Running-stitch . 
Method of Placing Needle in Hemming 
Gathers Ready for Pulling into Place . . 
Method of Overhanding .... 
The Cover of the Textile Book . 
A Page in the Textile Book 

Cotton Bolls 

Position of the Needle in Feather-stitching 
Method of Sewing on Button 

The Weaving-card 

The Finished Sewing-apron 
Steps in Making a Plain Seam . 
Machine-made French Seam 
Lace Edgings of Good Design . 
Good Types of Beading .... 
Ribbon Loom Weaving Silk for Neckties . 
Method of Folding Cloth when Cutting a True 
Method of Joining Two Bias Strips . 
Finished Casing which Might be Used around 

a Nightgown 

Silkworm 

Silk Cocoons 

Silk Moth 



Bias 

Neck 



the 



of 



4 
7 
9 
9 
12 
13 
14 
19 
20 
22 
24 
25 
31 
35 
39 
39 
44 
47 
56 
58 
5S 

59 
60 
61 
62 



XVI 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



Weighing Raw Silk, Japan 
The Finished Nightgown 
Method of Hemstitching 
Harvesting Flax by Hand 
Retting Flax 
Cross-stitching . 
Initial Done in Cross-stitch 
Method of Making a French Hem 
Construction of Woolen Yarns . 
Construction of Worsted Yarns . 
The Construction of a Felled Seam 
Good Types of Embroideries 
Back-stitching .... 

Placket 

The Finished Placket 

Method of Joining Embroidery . 

The Right Side of the "Join" . 

Straightening the Bottom of the Underslip 

Method of Putting Ruffle on with a Tuck 

Method of Making a Stocking Darn . 

Method of Basting Bias Strips around Armhole 

The Finished Underslip 

Four Steps in Making a Hemmed Patch 

Four Steps in Making an Overhand Patch 

Method of Making Embroidered Scallops 

A Page from the Clothing Book 

Design in Blanket-stitch . 

Method of Making Blanket-stitch 

Method of Making Chain-stitch 

Cotton Fibers Magnified . 

Flax Fibers Magnified 

Wool Fibers Magnified 

Silk Fibers Magnified 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



THE SEWING-BASKET 

A sewing-basket in which to place the imple- 
ments used for sewing is needed by every seam- 
stress if she is to do her sewing easily and well. A 
basket or box can be kept in better order than a 
bag, and sewing-materials when kept in a box or 
basket are less rumpled than when put in a bag. 

The implements needed in the box are scissors 
or shears, tape-line, needles, emery bag, pin-cushion, 
pins, thread and thimble. In order to do good work 
the implements must be of the right kind and in 
good condition. 

Scissors are six inches or less in length, while 
shears are over six inches in length. It is always 
best to buy shears when both cannot be purchased, 
because shears are always needed for cutting out 
garments. 

Shears may be bent or straight in shape ; the 
bent ones are easier to use because they do not raise 
the cloth far from the table in cutting. Select 
shears or scissors that are made of forged steel and 
that are not so tightly joined that they work hard. 
Scissors or shears must be sharp if they are to do 



4 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

good work. Be careful about allowing them to 
drop on the floor, since this loosens them so that 
they will not cut a true edge and may bend or break 
the point. Never buy cheap scissors or shears be- 
cause cheap ones will never do satisfactory work. 
Buttonhole scissors used for cutting buttonholes are 
very convenient to have in the work-box. 




Good Types of Shears and Scissors 



The other implement found in the work-box made 
from steel is the needle. Needles have been used 
for a longer period than any other implement used 
for sewing. Needles made of fish-bones, of ivory 
and of bronze were used in early times. Steel 
needles originated in Spain and were introduced 
into England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 5 

Needles, while very small, require a great deal of 
care in manufacture, and pass through the hands 
of a great many workmen before they are finished. 
Ordinary sewing-needles are sold in packages with 
twenty-five needles in each package. 

There are three kinds of needles used for plain 
sewing : (1) sharps, the longest needles ; (2) ground- 
downs, the next in length ; and (3) betweens, which 
are the shortest needles. 

Needles are of twelve sizes, the sizes being num- 
bered from 1 to 12, the No. 12 being the finest. A 
package of needles may contain needles of different 
sizes or may contain needles all of one size. Sizes 
8, 9 and 10 will be used most in our class work, as 
these are the sizes used for most ordinary sewing. 

If needles and thread are too coarse for the sew- 
ing that is being done, the stitches will never look 
well. Select the thread that is near the size of the 
thread in the cloth on which the sewing is to be done, 
and select a needle just large enough to carry the 
thread. Good sewing cannot be done with a bent 
or rusty needle. Needles, when not being used, 
should be placed in the pin-cushion or in a needle- 
book and not left in the sewing. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
DIRECTIONS FOE, LABORATORY WORK 

Personal appearance : The hands should be washed be- 
fore beginning any sewing. With a wool dress or skirt 
some kind of sewing-apron should be worn, so that the 
work will not become soiled from rubbing over the dress. 

Position : Sit erect with back against chair and with feet 
on the floor. Hold the work so that there is no need 



G SEWING AND TEXTILES 

for stooping over. Never pin work to your knee when 
sewing. Sitting with a table in front of you, when 
sewing, is the best plan. 
Care of work : Needles should never be left in the material 
when one has finished sewing, because dampness may 
cause the needle to rust and this injures the material. 
Thread-ends on all spools should be slipped through 
the groove made for that purpose. The tape-line 
should be neatly folded, and all other equipment in 
the sewing-box placed in order. All materials used 
should be neatly folded before they are placed in the box, 
basket, or bag. 

IMPLEMENTS FOR THE SEWING- 
BASKET 

The emery bag is used for keeping the needle bright 
and free from rust. 

The tape-line is always needed in doing accurate 
work. Select one made of cloth, double, and stitched 
on both edges, and finished with brass tips on the 
ends. It should be sixty inches in length and every 
inch should be divided into eighths. 

Pins used in sewing should have a sharp point 
and should not be coarse. English pins are the best 
to buy because they are fine and sharp-pointed. 
Pins are made from brass wire and require a great 
deal of work in making. A "paper" contains 360 
pins. Often pins to be used for sewing are sold by 
the box. Never use bent or rusty pins in sewing. 

The best pin-cushion -is stuffed with wool rather 
than cotton because needles and pins run through 
the wool much more easily than through the cotton. 
The pin-cushion may be used only for the pins and 
a needle-book used for the needles. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



Thimbles are made from many materials, the 
most used materials being silver, gold, aluminum, 
celluloid and brass. Ivory and pearl thimbles are 
sometimes used. Thimbles may be plain, or deco- 
rated with etching or with jewels. Aluminum thimbles 
are very cheap but do not wear well. These are 
good to use in the class work because there is danger 
of losing a more expensive thimble. Silver thimbles 




Pages from the Booklet on " The Sewing-basket " 

are generally used by most seamstresses. A thimble 
made of brass should never be selected. 

The first thimble in England was made by John 
Lofting about 200 years ago. It was worn on the 
thumb and was called a "thumb bell." Our grand- 
mothers used thimbles that were open on top and 
the needle was pushed through the cloth with the 
side of the thimble. 

In selecting a thimble, buy one that is large enough 
to allow the end of the finger to strike the end of 
the thimble. The size is told by a number placed 
on the thimble. 



8 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

Sewing-thread is made from cotton, linen and silk. 
Fine, smooth, even thread was not made until the 
sewing-machine was invented. A great deal of 
thread is now made in Scotland, but there are large 
factories in America. Cotton and linen threads 
are made in different sizes and are sold by number, 
the higher the number the finer the thread. The 
numbers do not run consecutively. Silk thread is 
numbered by letters, A, B, C and D being the 
usual sizes. Besides the ordinary sewing-threads 
there are many kinds made for special purposes, 
such as buttonhole twist and darning cotton. 

When removing thread from the spool, measure 
a strand the length of the arm, cut it from the spool, 
and fasten the cut end on the spool through the 
little groove made for this purpose on the edge of 
the spool. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
LEARNING TO USE EQUIPMENT 

Scissors : Learn to hold scissors correctly. Practice 
cutting a straight edge. If bent shears are used, lay 
a piece of paper on the table and cut across it with the 
shears. How should they be held to keep the paper 
as nearly as possible flat on the table? When would 
it be convenient to use bent shears? 

Tape-line : Make the following measurements with the 
tape-line, and indicate length on piece of paper : f inch ; 
f in. ; 1-j in. ; ^ in. ; ■§■ in. ; 1 in. 

Thread : Measure length of thread to be used in needle ; 
cut from spool with scissors, never bite nor break the 
thread. Fasten thread-end on spool. Thread needle. 
Practice making knot in end of thread ; a knot should 
not be too large and should never have a "tail.". 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



9 



Thimble : Try on the thimble. Of what material is it 
made ? Is it the proper size ? Use it in doing all sewing. 

Basting : This is used to hold material in place and to 
serve as a guide when sewing. Basting must be done 




Three Types of Basting 



in such a way that the material will be held firmly, and 
when it is to be used as a guide it must be straight. If 
possible, basting should be done in such a way that the 
final stitches in the sewing will not run through nor 
across the basting-stitches ; it is then easier to remove 
the basting, and 
there will be no 
danger of breaking 
the thread used in 
the final stitching. 
Basting-stitches may 
be long, or short, or 
uneven in length. 
One fourth inch 
basting-stitches 
should be used for 
holding together ma- 
terials for stitching 
on the sewing-ma- 
chine ; for long seams in skirts use three -J inch basting 
with one 2 or 3 inch basting-stitch. Practice making 
basting-stitches. 
Running-stitches : These are very small stitches, like 
basting-stitch, used to hold two or more pieces of cloth. 




Method of Making Running -STkTCH 



10 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

The stitches should be even in length, and the row of 
stitches kept straight. Hold the material between 
the thumb and forefinger of each hand, with the thimble 
against the end of the needle ; take as many stitches 
on the needle as possible before drawing it through, push- 
ing the needle with the thimble-finger and guiding it 
with the other four fingers. Fasten thread by taking 
two stitches, one over the other. Practice making the 
running-stitch. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name the implements that should be in the sewing- 
basket. 

2. Of what materials are thimbles made ? Which are best ? 

3. What are shears ? scissors ? 

4. How should scissors be cared for? 

5. Name three kinds of needles used for plain sewing. 

6. How is the size stated ? 

7. What kind of pins should be used when sewing? 

8. What kind of tape-line is best to buy ? 

9. How is the size of cotton thread indicated? silk? 



MATERIALS FOR THE SEWING-APRON 

A sewing-apron is very necessary when one is 
wearing a wool or silk dress, as it keeps the sewing 
material from rubbing against the dress and becoming 
soiled, and keeps ravelings off the dress. Sewing- 
aprons may be made from various materials. Three 
which may be used for the apron made in class are 
dimity, lawn and gingham. All of these are cotton 
materials. 

Dimity is a material 30-36 inches in width, light 
weight, thin cloth, with cords or ribs which dis- 
tinguish it. It is made in white, in plain colors, or 
in figures. The cord or rib in dimity is made by 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 11 

running a heavy thread through the material when 
it is being woven. The cord may run lengthwise 
only, or may run both lengthwise and crosswise, 
in which case it is called cross-barred dimity. The 
material usually breaks or splits along the cords 
when it wears out. 

Lawn is a thin starched material, 36-40 inches in 
width, and is made in white, in plain colors, or in 
figures. 

Both lawns and dimities fade badly when washed, 
especially those made in figures. They also rumple 
easily. These materials, however, make dainty 
aprons and are often trimmed with lace or finished 
with fancy stitches, such as feather-stitching. Lawns 
and dimities are used also for summer dresses. 
When selecting them for either aprons or dresses, 
choose a piece that is firmly woven of fine threads. 
This will require buying the medium or high-priced 
materials, but it is more economical to buy good 
material for such garments than to buy cheap cloth 
that will shrink and fade badly the first time it is 
washed. It is not economical to use time or spend 
money for making garments from cheap materials. 

Ginghams are used probably more than any other 
fabric. They are of several types and vary in width 
and price. They are made in stripes, checks and 
plaids. Gingham of a good grade holds its color 
when washed and does not rumple like dimity 
and lawn. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

See if you can find pieces of dimity, lawn and 
gingham in the scrap-bag at home. Bring these to 



12 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



school to use in your Textile Book. Bring to school 
a sample of the material you expect to purchase to 
use in making the apron. What is the price of the 
material? What is the width? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 



STITCHES TO USE IN MAKING THE APRON 

Textile study : Examine the samples of dimity, lawn and 
gingham brought to school. Discuss quality of each. 
From the samples brought from the stores, decide on 

two or three pieces that 
may be used for the aprons. 
Which will launder best? 
Let each pupil decide how 
much material will be needed 
for making the apron. How 
much will it cost? (See 
next lesson for description 
of apron.) 

STITCHES 



Hemming : A plain hem is 
made by turning the raw 
edge of material toward the 
wrong side, one eighth to one 
quarter inch, depending on 
the width of the hem ; creas- 
ing this fold firmly and fold- 
ing again toward the wrong 
side the desired width. A 
piece of cardboard marked 
to show the width of the 
hem may be used as a guide 
to keep the hem even when 




Method of Placing Needle 
in Hemming 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



13 



folding. Baste the hem. In making the apron the hems 
will be finished with the hemming-stitch down the side 
and the feather-stitch across the pocket. In hemming, 
hold the material over the first finger of the left hand 
with the thumb on top of the hem. Hide the knot in the 
thread under the folded edge of the hem. Take a tiny 
stitch in the material close to the fold, but before pulling 
the needle through, take up a tiny bit of the fold, holding 




Gathers Ready for Pulling into Place 

the needle in a slanting position with its point toward 
the left shoulder. Pull needle through. Repeat, taking 
the next stitch a little beyond where the needle came out. 
Fasten the hemming by taking stitches one over the 
other. A hem is used as a finish for the raw edge of 
cloth. 
Gathering : Gathering consists of small, running-stitches 
with the thread so drawn as to full the material. Gathers 
must be " laid " if they are to go into a band easily. 
To do this, fill the needle as full of stitches as possible, 
then draw the material together. Wrap the thread 
around the needle in such a way that the material is 
held firmly, then pull down on the material, holding 



14 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

the needle firmly between the thumb and first finger 
of left hand, doing the pulling with the right. When 
the cloth is creased so that the gathers stay in place, 
unwind the thread and pull the needle through the ma- 
terial. Repeat with each needleful. Gather on a 
single thread, being sure that there is a good knot in 
the end of the thread. When the gathering is finished, 
cut the thread without fastening, leaving it longer than 
the space in which the gathers are to fit. Make a knot 
in the end of the thread. 




Method of Overhanding 

Overhanding : This stitch will be used in making the 
pocket on the apron. Overhanding is used in sewing 
together two selvedge edges or two creased folds of 
cloth. It consists of tiny, slanting stitches taken 
over the two edges, beginning at the right and sewing 
toward the left. 

Practice making these stitches on pieces of cloth, learn- 
ing how to hold the cloth correctly. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Why is a sewing-apron useful? 

2. Describe lawn. For what purposes is it used? 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 15 

3. Describe dimity. 

4. What is barred dimity? 

5. Do dimity and lawn launder well? 

6. Why do we like lawn and dimity for making aprons? 

7. Does gingham launder well ? 

8. Which of the three materials rumples least ? 

9. How is a hem made ? For what is it used? 

10. Why is gathering used? 

11. For what is basting used ? 

12. When may overhanding be used? 



A PIECE OF CLOTH 

Cloth is a fabric woven of cotton, linen, wool, or 
silk. The lengthwise threads in the cloth are called 
the warp. The crosswise threads are called the 
woof or filling. The warp is the stronger set of 
threads. The selvedge of cloth is the finished length- 
wise edge. It is firmer and more tightly woven 
than the rest of the cloth, and in wash material is 
apt to draw up after the cloth is laundered. For 
this reason it is usually cut from wash material 
when making a garment, and when not removed is 
clipped crosswise every few inches to keep it from 
drawing the edge of the cloth. 

Nap is the shaggy substance on the surface of 
cloth and varies with the different kinds of cloth 
and the kind of fiber used. The fiber is the sub- 
stance from which the yarns are spun which are 
woven into cloth. The four principal fibers used for 
making yarns are : cotton, obtained from the seed 
pod of the cotton plant ; linen, obtained from the 
stems of the flax plant ; wool, obtained mainly from 
the fleece of sheep; and silk, obtained from the 
cocoon of the silkworm. 



16 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

Spinning is the twisting together of fiber to form 
yarns. Weaving is the process of interlacing two 
sets of yarns together so that they form cloth. 
Perhaps you have made paper mats by weaving. 
The machine on which the weaving of cloth is done 
is called the loom. Spinning and weaving were 
done in the home by our grandmothers, who made 
the cloth used by the family, but now fabrics used 
for clothing and household textiles are made in the 
factory. Very fine machinery is used, and every 
piece of cloth that we buy has gone through numer- 
ous processes in the factory before it is sold in the 
store. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

MAKING THE APRON 

Textile study : Examine samples of cotton cloth. Pull 
out both warp and woof threads. Is there a difference 
in the size? Which is the more difficult to break? Pull 
the yarn in pieces. What is left? Examine the selvedge. 
Tear a piece of gingham. What happens to the edge? 
Would it be best to tear or cut the edge that is to be 
hemmed or gathered? 

Material: Use white cross-barred dimity. The amount 
of material needed is the desired length of the apron 
plus 8^ inches. Thread suitable for material. Needles 
suitable for thread. Button. Heavy cotton floss. 
Making the apron : Take your waist measure, being sure 
that you do not pull the tape-line too tight. Add two 
inches to this measure and you will then have the 
necessary length of the band for the apron. Measure 
along the selvedge of the cloth to see if the length is as 
long as, or longer than, the required band length. Cut 
off the selvedges, making the edges even. Straighten 
both ends of the material. This is done by pulling out 
a woof thread and cutting on the open line left after 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 17 

drawing out the thread. Always pull out a woof thread 
which extends clear across the cloth. 

For the band, cut off a piece 2\ inches wide down the 
lengthwise side of the material. Draw a thread to 
follow in cutting. 

Turn a hem, \ inch wide, towards the right side of 
the material, down each lengthwise edge of the apron. 
Baste and hem by hand. Across the bottom of the 
apron make a half-inch hem, turning it toward the 
right side. Baste. This hem is to be feather-stitched 
later. 

Gather the top of the apron, running the gathering 
thread \ inch from the edge of material. Take your 
band material and, if it is too long, cut it off until it 
is the required length. If it is too short, perhaps some 
one using the same material as you are using will have 
a piece of band material left, and you can sew this on 
the end of your band, using fine running-stitches. Be 
sure when you put the band on the apron that this 
seam is inside the belt. 

Find the middle of the top of the apron and the 
middle of the band. Pin these two points together, 
placing the right side of the band against the right side 
of the apron. Measure seven inches from the middle 
of the band toward each end of the band. Mark with 
pins. The gathers are to be made to fit into this space. 
Pin the sides of the apron to the band at these points. 
Pull up the gathering thread until the gathers lie evenly 
in the space. Wrap thread around the pin holding 
the band and apron together, so that the thread is 
tight and will not allow the gathers to slip. Distribute 
the gathers evenly across the space and pin to the band 
in several places. Baste apron to band, across gathers, 
with \ inch basting-stitches. Sew together with running- 
stitches, or stitch by machine. 

Begin at the gathers on one side and fold the band 
in about \ inch all the way around to the gathers on 



18 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

the other side. Turn the folded edge down over the 
gathers so that the fold just covers the gathering stitches. 
Pin into place carefully. Baste the band together 
along the open side and across the ends, being sure that 
the folded edges are even and the corners square. Over- 
hand together. Baste band down on gathers. Hem. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. What is cloth? 

2. What is meant by spinning? weaving? 

3. Name the four principal textile fibers. 

4. From what source is each obtained? 

5. What is the selvedge on cloth? 

6. What should be done with it when making wash garments ? 

7. What is meant by the nap on cloth? 

8. What is a loom? 



GINGHAMS 

Gingham is a cotton fabric which needs especial 
study because it is used in such large quantity in 
this country. There are several kinds of gingham. 

Apron gingham is a coarse material made of rather 
heavy threads woven together somewhat loosely. 
It shrinks when washed. It is used for making 
aprons and sometimes for house dresses. 

Domestic ginghams are a cheap grade of gingham, 
usually woven of coarse yarns, and are harsh to the 
touch when crushed in the hand. These are often 
used for dresses or for aprons. They are very similar 
to apron gingham and about the same in price. 

French gingham is made of even, smooth yarns 
firmly woven together. It does not shrink when 
washed and wears extremely well. French gingham 
is used for making dresses. It has a smooth finish 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



19 



that is very beautiful, and the cloth is soft when 
crushed in the hand. It is much more expensive 
than either apron or domestic ginghams. 

Zephyr ginghams are made of very fine yarns 
and are thinner than other ginghams. They always 
have heavy threads running through them, making 
cords or ribs. They 
are usually made in 
stripes or plaids. 
They are used for 
dresses. 

Madras gingham 
is a rather heavy 
cloth used for men's 
shirts and women's 
tailored shirtwaists. 

Kindergarten ging- 
ham or cloth is a 
firmly woven, rather 
heavy material, used 
for children's romp- 
ers. It wears well 
and is a kind of ging- 
ham that has be- 
come very popular. 

Scotch ginghams are very fine quality ginghams 
usually made in plaid designs — the designs being 
copies of the Scotch Highlanders' plaids, thereby 
giving the cloth its name. It is an expensive 
gingham, used for dresses. 

Chambray is a gingham that is always woven with 
a colored warp and a white woof. It is never woven 
in designs but has the appearance of a plain color. 
It is used for dresses and aprons. 




The Cover of the Textile Book 

Light green paper, with dark green design 

in water color ; tied with a green cord. 



20 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



All gingham is colored alike on both sides. This 
is because the yarn is dyed before the cloth is 
woven. When cloth is dyed in this way it holds 
its color. This is why gingham usually launders 
well. 

Gingham is woven with a plain weave, that is, 
over one thread, under one thread, over and under 




A Page in the Textile Book 
Showing samples of different ginghams. 



across the cloth. The next row is woven over the 
thread that was under in the first row, and under 
the thread that was over, and so on across the cloth. 
The third row is made like the first row. 

Most girls wear gingham dresses, and it is well 
to know the different kinds that may be pur- 
chased. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 21 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

How many kinds of gingham scraps can you find 
at home? Keep them for the Textile Book. What 
is the price per yard of the following ginghams : 
Domestic, Apron, Chambray and Madras ? Do your 
local stores carry French ginghams? If so, what 
is the price? Do ginghams cost more than they 
did two years ago ? Bring samples to school. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the apron {Continued) 

Textile study : Make a Textile Book by using white 
sheets of paper for the leaves and a colored or brown-paper 
cover. Decorate the cover as desired. Cut the lawn, 
dimity and gingham samples equal in size. Paste each in 
the book by one edge, so that the samples can be examined 
on both sides. Under each sample place the name of the 
material. As other materials are studied they can be 
added to the book. 

Continue work on apron. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name the kinds of gingham mentioned in the lesson. 
Describe each. 

2. Which of them are used for dresses? for aprons? for 
children's clothes? 

3. Why does gingham hold its color well? 

4. In what designs is gingham made? 

5. What kind of weave is used in making gingham? 

6. What is the price of the cheaper ginghams? of the more 
expensive ? 

7. Is all gingham of the same width? 

8. How will a knowledge of ginghams be of value to us ? 



22 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

COTTON 

More clothing is made from cotton than from 
any other fiber. Besides the many kinds of cloth 
used for dresses, waists, aprons and underclothing, 
there are stockings, gloves, knitted underwear, laces 
and embroideries which are made from cotton. 
Thread for sewing, crocheting and embroidering is 
made from cotton. Absorbent cotton is used by 
doctors, and gun cotton is used for explosives. 




Cotton Bolls 

Cotton is grown in the Southern States. Texas 
produces more cotton than any other state. The 
principal countries growing cotton besides the United 
States are Brazil, India and Egypt. There are a 
great many different varieties of cotton. 

The cotton seeds are planted in the early spring. 
The crop begins to ripen in July and continues to 
do so until November or sometimes December. 
Cotton fiber is obtained from the cotton bolls, or seed 
pods, of the cotton plant. The outside of the 
cotton boll is brown, but when it is fully ripe the 
brown covering breaks and a white fluffy mass 
appears ; this is the cotton fiber, and it clings to the 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 23 

seeds. The cotton is ready for picking when it 
reaches this stage. 

Men, women and children go through the fields 
picking the cotton from the bolls by hand and placing 
it in bags or baskets. The cotton is then sent to the 
gin house where the fibers are separated from the 
seeds. Formerly the seeds were pulled from the 
fiber by hand, and it took one person a whole day 
to separate one pound ; but in 1793 Eli Whitney 
invented a machine called a saw gin which separated 
the fibers from the seeds. This machine, now known 
as the cotton gin, made it possible to do much more 
work in one day than could be done by hand. All 
our cotton to-day is separated by machinery and 
the process is called " ginning." 

The oil from the seeds is used in making salad oil, 
cooking fats, soaps and candles, and the cake left 
after the oil is pressed out is used for feeding cattle 
and making fertilizer. 

The cotton fiber is pressed into bales which are 
covered with cloth and bound with iron bands. It 
is then ready for shipping. Cotton bales in the 
United States weigh about 500 pounds. 



LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the apron (Continued) 

Textile study : If possible, secure some cotton bolls to 
examine. Observe how the seeds and fiber are joined. 
Separate the fiber from the seed. Place a fiber un- 
der a microscope, if there is one available, to see how it 
looks. 



24 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



STITCHES TO USE ON THE APRON 

Feather-stitching : This is a stitch used for decoration. 

On the apron it will be used to fasten the hem and to 

make the divisions in the pocket, as well as for decoration. 

Place the work over the left forefinger and hold it 

with the thumb. Start with the knot in the thread 

on the wrong side 
and at the end 
farthest from you. 
Work towards you. 
Place the needle as 
shown in the pic- 
ture, holding the 
loop of thread down 
with the thumb of 
the left hand. A 
stitch is made on 
one side of the 
middle line, slanting 
the needle toward 
the line, and then 
on the other side of 
the middle line, 
pointing toward the 
line. The feather- 
stitch maybe varied 
by making two or 
three stitches on one 
side before crossing 
to the other side of 
the line. 

The aim in 

feather-stitching is 

to do it evenly. 

Practice making the stitch on a piece of | inch checked 

gingham. When feather-stitching the apron, perhaps 




Position of the Needle in Feather- 
stitching 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



25 



you will need to run a basting thread to mark the 
" middle line." 
Buttons and buttonholes : The apron band should have 
a button and buttonhole so that the apron may be put 
on easily. Sew on the button, using one not more than 
\ inch in diameter. The 
button is sewed on in 
the following manner. 
Use a double thread in 
the needle. Find the 
middle of the width of 
the belt, one half inch 
from the end ; at this 
point begin with the 
knot in the end of the 
thread on the right side 
of the belt ; run the 
needle through a hole 
in the button, place a 
pin over the top of the 
button and sew over it ; 
bring the needle down 
through the opposite 
hole in the button and 
through the cloth to the 
wrong side, then up 
through the first hole, 
and repeat the process 
three or four times. 
Remove the pin and 
wind the thread around 
the stitches under the 
button, run the needle 
through to the wrong side, and fasten with two or three 
stitches, one over the other. 

Measure exactly where the buttonhole should be 
placed, and mark with a pin. The buttonhole should 




Method of Sewing on Button 



26 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



be one half inch from the end of the belt, cut length- 
wise of the belt, and just large enough to slip over the 
button easily. The buttonhole may be cut with the 
buttonhole scissors, or by folding the material across 
the point where the middle of the buttonhole is to be 
and cutting through the four thicknesses of cloth from 
the fold, a distance of one half the length of the button- 
hole desired. Cut the buttonhole on a thread of the 
material. 

The buttonhole must first be overcast. Overcasting 
is much like overhanding, except that the stitches are 

deeper and farther apart 
and the work is done 
from left to right. It is 
used to keep edges from 
raveling. Use a thread 
without a knot, and over- 
cast the two sides of the 
buttonhole, beginning at 
the end farthest from the 
end of the belt. Do not 
cut or fasten the thread 
when the overcasting is 
finished, but begin at the 
same point to make the buttonhole-stitch. Hold the 
material between the thumb and first finger of the left 
hand, with the buttonhole running parallel with the 
first finger. Place the needle and thread in the position 
shown in the illustration, pull the needle through, 
drawing it at right angles to and toward the cut edge 
of the buttonhole. A small loop or knot called a 
" purl " will be formed on the edge of the buttonhole. 
This prevents the edge of the buttonhole from wearing 
out or losing its shape. Continue with the button- 
hole-stitch, placing the stitches close together until the 
end is reached. This is the end nearest the belt end. 
To finish this end, continue making the buttonhole- 




Method of Making Button- 
hole-stitch 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



27 



stitch around the end, letting the purls all come to- 
gether at one point. It takes about five stitches to 
do this, and when it is finished the needle should be in 
a position to continue the 
buttonhole-stitch down 
the second side. This is 
called a " fan " end. 
Turn the buttonhole so 
that the unfinished side 
is in the right position 
for making the button- 
hole-stitch. Continue 
the buttonhole-stitch 
until the other end is 
reached. This end is to 
be finished with a " bar." 

This is made by taking 

two or three stitches 

across the end and ex- 
tending them the width of 

the buttonhole-stitches. 

The bar is finished by 

making the blanket-stitch 

over these threads and 

through the cloth. This 

stitch is done from left 

to right, the needle and 

thread being placed in 

the position shown in 

the picture on page 137. 

Make the stitches close 

together. Run the needle 

through to the wrong 




Method of Making Buttonhole 



side and fasten with two or three little stitches, one 
over the other, being sure that they do not show on 
the right side. The result should be a perfect button- 
hole. 



28 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

Practice making the overcast-stitch, the blanket-stitch 
and the making of buttonholes. One eighth inch checked 
gingham is good to use for practice work until the work 
can be done evenly. Do not make the buttonhole on 
the apron until you have learned to make a good one. 
This will require practice. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. In what ways is cotton fiber used? 

2. Where is cotton grown? 

3. Describe the structure of the cotton boll. 

4. How is cotton picked? 

5. What is ginning? 

6. Who invented the first cotton gin? When? 

7. How is cotton fiber prepared for market? 

8. Name four new stitches that you have learned. 

9. Name some other uses for each stitch besides the use on 
the apron. 

10. How does overhanding differ from overcasting? 

HOW COTTON CLOTH IS MADE 

The cotton bales are shipped to many parts of the 
world where factories use the cotton in different 
ways. Some factories make only thread, others 
make only certain kinds of cotton cloth, such as 
gingham, while still others may make only under- 
wear and hosiery. 

When the bales reach the factory they are opened 
and the cotton is removed from its wrappings. It 
is then placed in a machine which blows out the 
dust and dirt. This machine is called a picker. 
The cotton as it leaves this machine looks like a 
roll of cotton batting about six feet wide, such as 
we see used for making bed comforters. This roll is 
then placed in another machine in which the cotton 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 29 

is cleaned more thoroughly and the fibers are 
straightened. When it comes from this machine it 
is in the form of a long, soft rope. This process is 
called carding. 

The cotton rope is then passed through a series 
of machines, each one making the rope smaller in size 
and twisting it to make it stronger. This is called 
spinning. The thread which is thus spun from the 
rope, and is to be used in making cloth, is called 
yarn. 

The yarn may be bleached before it is ready for 
the loom. Perhaps it is dyed, as in making gingham, 
or it may be prepared for making mercerized cotton 
cloth. The yarn is then sized. This is a process 
in which starch or some other material is put into 
the yarn to make it smoother, so that it will stand 
the strain of weaving. Have you ever seen any one 
use beeswax on sewing-thread? It has the same 
effect as the sizing on the yarn. 

The yarn is now ready for the loom. Cloth is 
now made on looms run by machinery. Our great- 
grandmothers made the cloth on hand-looms, which 
was a very slow process. The first loom run by 
machinery was invented in 1784 by Edmund Cart- 
wright of England. 

In preparing the loom for weaving, the warp yarns 
are wound on a roller at the back of the loom and 
are threaded through the frame of the loom and 
fastened to the cloth beam in front. The woof yarns, 
or filling yarns, are wound on bobbins or spools which 
are fastened into the shuttle. In weaving, the shuttle 
passes back and forth across the warp yarns, weaving 
under and over them as the design of the cloth 
requires. In all looms there are devices for separat- 



30 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

ing the warp threads so that the shuttle passes 
through easily, and other devices for pushing the 
woof threads tightly together. As the cloth is 
woven, it is rolled on the beam at the front of the 
loom. 

The cloth, as it comes from the loom, is inspected 
to see if there are any defects, and the thread-ends 
are cut off. The cloth may then be bleached, as 
in making white materials ; or perhaps it is dyed, 
if the yarns were not dyed before weaving. Usually 
the cloth is starched, and at the last it is stretched 
and pressed between heavy rollers to give it the 
smooth finish we like on cotton cloth. It is then 
wound into bolts and is ready for the market. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the apron (Continued) 

Textile study : Examine the threads pulled from a piece 
of cotton cloth. Can you see the twist in the thread? If 
there is a small hand-loom at the school, practice weaving 
on it. Examine the loom. Look at pictures of power- 
looms. Perhaps there is in the neighborhood a factory 
doing weaving which the class can visit. 

Make a weaving-card by taking a piece of stiff card- 
board and using a large darning-needle ; make a row of 
holes one inch from each end, having the holes one fourth 
inch apart. Take heavy, firmly twisted, white cotton 
floss, and thread it into a large" darning-needle. Make 
the warp threads by bringing the needle up through a 
hole at one corner, taking the thread across and down 
through the opposite hole. Bring the needle up through 
the next hole, running the thread across the card to 
the opposite hole, and so on until the card is finished. 
Fasten the threads well. Use colored yarn for the woof 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



31 



threads. Thread the yarn into the darning-needle, and 
do one inch of plain weaving on the card. The needle 
takes the place of what part of the loom? 

Save this weaving-card to use later. 
Finishing the apron : Make feather-stitching with the 

cotton floss across the half-inch hem of the apron, doing 

it on the right side of the hem. This makes the finish 

for the top of the 

pocket. Turn up 

the bottom of the 

apron eight inches 

on the wrong side. 

Baste the hemmed 

edges evenly to- 
gether at each side. 

Overhand these 

edges together, using 

very small, even 

stitches. Take out 

the basting and turn 

the pocket over to 

the right side of the 

apron. Pin it down 

evenly to the apron. 

Measure the width 

of the pocket and 

divide it into thirds. 

Mark each third with a pin. Make a straight line of 

basting from the top of the pocket to the bottom at 

each pin, thus marking the thirds. Feather-stitch down 

these lines, stitching through both thicknesses of ma- 
terial. Sew on the button and make the buttonhole. 




The Weaving-card 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 



1 . For what is the picker machine used in making cotton yarn ? 

2. What is the next process through which the fiber goes? 
Explain the process. 



32 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

3. How is cotton yarn spun? 

4. Through what other process does the yarn go before it 
is ready for the loom ? 

5. How is the loom prepared for weaving? 

6. When was the first power-loom made ? 

7. Can you explain, after you practice weaving, how the 
selvedge is made on cloth? 

8. How is cotton cloth finished after it leaves the loom? 



COTTON MATERIAL COMMONLY USED 
FOR UNDERWEAR 

White cotton materials commonly used for making 
underwear are muslin, long cloth, cambric and nain- 
sook. Cotton crepe and dimity are sometimes 
used. 

Muslin is a soft cotton fabric that is 36 inches 
wide. The muslin we use for underclothing is 
bleached and is a clear white. Sometimes un- 
bleached muslins are used for sheets or pillow-cases. 
An unbleached muslin is cream-colored and is not so 
well finished as the bleached muslin. It is cheaper 
in price because it takes less time and work to finish 
this cloth than the bleached muslin. 

Most factory-made cloth is given a brand name 
that can be found stamped on the cloth, or on a 
label pasted on the outside of the bolt, or on the 
wrappings of the bolt. The quality of muslin is 
often known by a brand name. Alpine Rose is a 
fine quality of muslin suitable for underwear. 

Long cloth is a cotton fabric which is much like 
muslin, but softer and finer. It is 36 to 42 inches 
wide and comes in different qualities. It is called 
long cloth because it was first used in making long 
dresses for babies. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 33 

Cambric is a cloth with a smooth glossy finish. 
It is like muslin or long cloth, but can be distin- 
guished by its gloss. It is 36 inches in width. 
Berkeley cambric is one grade that is very good for 
underwear. Lonsdale cambric is another grade 
often used. 

Nainsook is a very soft light-weight material 
which comes in different qualities, varying in price. 
It varies in width from 36 to 45 inches. The finer 
grades are beautifully finished and are used for 
infants' clothes. Nainsook does not wear so well 
as muslin or long cloth when made into underwear, 
but is much used for finer garments. 

Cotton crepe is a soft, crinkled material that does 
not need to be ironed after washing. It is often 
used for underwear for this reason. It is 27 to 44 
inches in width and comes in different grades. In 
selecting cotton crepe for underwear, buy the kinds 
that are the softest and that do not feel harsh when 
crushed in the hand. 

Cross-barred and other dimities are used for under- 
clothing. They do not wear so well as any of the 
other materials mentioned in this lesson. 

When buying muslin, long cloth, cambric, or nain- 
sook, it is more economical to purchase them by the 
bolt than by the yard. For making the underwear 
in class we shall use long cloth, because it is soft and 
easy to handle and yet wears well and launders well. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Collect samples of muslins, long cloth, cambric, 
nainsook and cotton crepe. Perhaps you cannot 
find all of them, but some will find what others 



34 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

cannot get, and by dividing samples each can have 
all in her sample book. What is the price of each 
material? What is the price of a twelve-yard bolt 
of long cloth ? 

See if you can find any one who can tell you about 
the spinning and weaving done by our grandmothers. 
Perhaps you can find something in the library about 
the making of cloth in early times. Write a story 
about "The Making of Cloth in Early Times" to 
read in class and to put in your Textile Book. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

PLANNING THE NIGHTGOWN 

Textile study : Examine J yard samples of each of the 
cotton materials mentioned in the lesson. Can you tell 
what each is by looking at it carefully? What kind of 
weave is used in making them? Compare these samples 
with the ones brought from home. Does the quality 
differ? Which are the best materials to use in making 
underwear ? 

The pattern to use for the nightgown : Mount on cards, 
or sheets of paper, pictures showing nightgowns of 
different patterns. Examine these and decide which 
would be the easiest to make. The class will make a 
one-piece kimono nightgown. Can you tell why this 
style is selected? The pattern should be purchased 
at the store, and will be bought according to the size 
of the girl to wear the gown. If you will look in the 
pattern sheet or book you will see how the sizes for 
a girl's nightgown are shown. What sizes are needed 
for the class ? 
Materials needed for the nightgown : Use long cloth 
of good grade for the nightgown. To determine the 
amount needed, measure from the top of the shoulder 
next to the neck down to the floor, and add three inches 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



35 



to this length. (See Frontispiece.) Multiply this by 2. 
(If the teacher will buy the material by the bolt and 
sell it to the children, it can be obtained much cheaper.) 
Be sure to select long cloth, thirty-six inches in width, 
as this avoids piec- 
ing the sleeves and 
is not so wide that 
a strip down the side 
is wasted. Use Nos. 
80 and 90 thread, 
with Nos. 8 and 9 
needles. Basting 
thread may be used. 

The Apron: Finish 
the apron. Press it 
carefully. Wear it 

J The Finished Sewing-apron 

when yOU are Sew- Madeofacross . barre d dimity and feather- 
ing, stitched with light green floss. 




REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name white cotton materials that are used for making 
underwear. 

2. How can you tell muslin, long cloth and cambric apart ? 

3. What is unbleached muslin? 

4. What does cotton crepe look like? 

5. Is dimity a good material to use for underwear? Why? 

6. For what kind of underwear is it best to use nainsook? 

7. What is the most economical way to buy long cloth or 
other underwear material? 

8. Explain how the amount of material needed for the night- 
gown should be determined. 

9. How are sizes for girls' nightgowns given in the pattern 
sheets ? 

10. How is the size of the thread needed for making the night- 
gown determined ? 



3G SEWING AND TEXTILES 

THE SEWING-MACHINE 

The sewing-machine is used now so commonly 
that many persons do not know that sewing-machines 
have been in general use for only about sixty years. 
The first sewing-machine was made by Elias Howe 
of Spencer, Massachusetts, in 1846. In 1851 Isaac 
Merritt Singer began making sewing-machines, 
and " Singer" sewing-machines are still used, but 
they have been much improved in structure. In 
1856 James A. E. Gibbs, a farmer of Virginia, made 
a machine that used only one thread, and this 
improved machine is now sold under the name of 
" Wilcox and Gibbs." Another man who helped 
improve the very early sewing-machines was 
Allan B. Wilson, whose ideas were carried out 
in making the "Wheeler and Wilson" machine. 
At present there are many makes of sewing-machines 
on the market. 

All sewing had to be done by hand before the 
invention of the sewing-machine, and the making of 
a garment was a slow and tedious process. Little 
girls were taught to sew when they were very young, 
and many beautiful samples of their sewing have 
come down to us. One kind of such sewing is the 
"sampler" made on canvas with elaborate patterns 
in cross-stitch. Another favorite way of teaching 
a girl to sew was by having her make a patchwork 
quilt. While we should be very glad that we do 
not now have to do all our sewing by hand, yet we 
must learn how to do good hand-sewing, since 
there are many places in garment-making where 
it should be used if the garment is to look well 
finished. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 37 

There are two types of sewing-machines that may 
be purchased :, 

1 _ the double thread, or lock-stitch machine, on 
which two threads are used. One can stitch on 
either the right or wrong side of the material with 
this machine, as the stitching should be alike on 
both sides. This is the most common type of 
machine. 

2 — the single thread, or chain-stitch machine, on 
which only one thread is used. One must always 
stitch on the right side with this machine, as the 
wrong side of the stitching is in the form of a chain- 
stitch. When finishing the stitching, the thread 
must be fastened carefully, as the stitching pulls 
out very easily. One type of chain-stitch machine 
is used for sewing together the tops of sugar, flour 
and salt sacks, but this is a machine with a very 
different kind of stitch from the one made by the 
chain-stitch machine used for making garments. 

Sewing-machines run by electricity are now used 
in some homes. These are very helpful when there 
is a great deal of sewing to be done. Machines in 
garment factories are usually run by electricity. 

A sewing-machine must be studied carefully, so 
that one may understand how the parts are used 
and how they should be cleaned and oiled. A 
sewing-machine will not do good work unless it is 
in good order. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Make a list of the names of different kinds of 
sewing-machines which you have seen or heard 
about! What is the price of a good sewing-machine ? 



38 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

Practice stitching on the machine • Examine the machine 
to be used and find the following parts on a double-thread 
machine : 

1. Bobbin on which the lower thread is wound. 

2. Shuttle which carries the bobbin. 

3. Plate upon which the cloth rests in sewing. 

4. Feed which pushes the cloth along when stitching. 

5. Presser-foot which helps to hold the cloth in 
place. How is it raised and lowered ? 

6. Needle-bar which holds the needle. How is the 
needle fastened into the bar? 

7. Spool-holder for holding the upper thread. 

8. Bobbin-filler to use in winding the bobbin. 

9. Tension, used for regulating the tightness of the 
stitch. 

10. Screw, to regulate the length of the stitch. 

11. Treadle, upon which the feet rest. 

12. Connecting-rod which attaches the treadle to 
the machine or " head " on top of the table of the 
machine. 

13. Places for oiling. The book of directions com- 
ing with the machine will help you find these places. 

14. The method of covering the " head " when it is 
not in use. 

Practice running the machine without threading it 
until you can work the treadle easily, and until you 
can hold the cloth under the needle correctly. When 
you can make a straight row of needle-holes across 
the cloth you may begin making practice seams. 

Be careful to have the needle-bar raised as high as 
possible before removing the cloth from under the 
presser-foot, so that you will not bend the needle-point. 
What are the directions for removing the cloth from 
the machine, as given in the book of directions ? 
Seams : A seam is the joining line formed by sewing 
together two or more pieces of cloth. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



39 



A plain seam is made by joining two raw edges with 
a row of stitching, the stitching being done the desired 
distance from the edge of the cloth. The raw edges 




Steps in Making a Plain Seam 
1, Basting; 2, Running-stitch; 3, Overcasting. 

are afterwards trimmed and overcast. A plain seam is 
used in making dresses and aprons, and sometimes 
petticoats. 

A French seam is a seam so made that the raw edge 
of the cloth is covered. Make a very narrow plain 
seam on the right side of the material, remove the 




Machine-made French Seam 
Showing first and finished seams. 

bastings, trim the ravelings from the edge, crease the 
cloth along the stitching so that the right sides of the 
cloth are together, baste, and stitch through the two 
thicknesses of cloth just below the raw edge inside the 
seam. A French seam is used in making underwear, 
lingerie dresses and waists. 



40 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

Practice making a plain seam and a French seam, both 
by hand and on the machine. 

Continue your practice on the sewing-machine at home 
if possible. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. When and by whom was the first sewing-machine made? 

2. Name some other men who helped to improve the early 
sewing-machines. 

3. What two types of sewing-machines are there? Which 
is used in the sewing-room ? Which kind do you have at home ? 

4. Name the principal parts of the "head" of a sewing- 
machine. For what is each part used? 

5. What is the treadle? How is it connected with the other 
parts of the machine ? 

6. How is the stitch regulated on the machine ? 

7. When the sewing is finished how should the machine be 
cared for ? 

8. Name four makes of double-thread sewing-machines; 
name one make of chain-stitch machine. 

9. Why is it important to learn to sew well by hand ? 



OTHER COTTON MATERIALS 

There are many other kinds of cotton cloth which 
may be purchased besides the ones that have been 
studied. It is well to know the names of some of 
the most common of these materials, and also for 
what purpose each is used. Materials that can 
be purchased at all times in the store are called 
"standard materials." The ones we are to study 
are standard materials. 

Calico is a cheap grade of cotton cloth which is 
used for making inexpensive dresses, wrappers and 
aprons. It is made in figured designs, either on 
a white or colored background, and is 24 to 36 inches 
wide. It usually shrinks and fades when washed. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 41 

Cheesecloth is a very thin, light-weight, loosely 
woven cotton cloth, usually 36 inches wide. It is 
used, like bunting, for decoration, for dust-cloths 
and for many other purposes. Gauze used in 
surgery is one kind of cheesecloth. 

Canton flannel is a cotton material with a smooth 
surface on one side and a long soft nap on the other. 
It was first made to sell in Canton, China, whence 
came its name. It is 27 to 30 inches wide and is 
not dyed. It is used for interlinings in coats, and 
sometimes for underwear. 

Cretonne is a rather heavy cotton cloth made in 
stripes and colored floral designs. It is 36 to 50 
inches wide. It is used for draperies, chair covers 
and cushions, and for bags and other fancy articles. 
It often fades in the sun and when laundered. 

Chintz is a fabric much like cretonne, and is used 
for the same purposes. 

Denim is a heavy, strong cloth used for covering 
furniture, for pillows and for men's overalls. It is 
36 inches wide and comes in various colors. 

Flannelette is a cotton cloth with a soft fine nap on 
both sides. It is often made in stripes or checks, 
which are printed on a white or colored surface. It 
is used in making kimonos, wrappers, or whiter 
nightgowns. 

Organdie is a sheer, very fine, light-weight material 
that is given a stiff finish. It is used for dresses 
and waists. It is made in plain colors, or in figures 
on a white or colored background. It is 18 to 60 
inches wide, and different widths and grades are 
sold at very different prices. 

Percale is a closely woven, firm material used for 
dresses or aprons. It comes in white or plain colors, 



42 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

or in figures on a white or colored background. It 
is usually 36 inches wide. 

Pique is a heavy white material used for dresses, 
vests, neckties and bedspreads. Cords or figures 
are woven in the cloth when it is made. It is 27 
to 40 inches in width. 

Sateen is a cotton cloth, woven like satin, and the 
right side has a smooth, glossy surface. It is used 
for linings, for petticoats, for covering furniture, for 
bags and in other ways. It is white, or made in 
plain colors, or in figures on a white or colored 
background. It is 27 to 36 inches wide. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Find samples of as many cotton materials as 
possible. Ask the price per yard of the following : 
calico, percale, organdie, cretonne and sateen. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

MAKING THE NIGHTGOWN 

Textile study : Examine samples of each of the ma- 
terials mentioned in the lesson. Which are plain- weave 
materials ? Use a hand microscope to study the ma- 
terials. Compare calico and percale ; canton flannel and 
flannelette ; organdie and lawn ; cretonne and chintz. 
How can you tell one from the other? 
Cutting out the nightgown : Read the description of the 
pattern given on the envelope. Open the pattern. 
Study all the groups and rows of different dots, notches, 
etc., and find what each one means. Does the pattern 
allow for the seams? Measure from the shoulder at 
the neck of your pattern to the bottom of the pattern. 
Is the pattern the right length according to the measure- 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 43 

merits you made when planning the amount of long- 
cloth needed ? If it is too long, turn up the extra length 
at the bottom ; if too short, allow the extra length when 
cutting the gown. 

Follow directions for laying the pattern on the ma- 
terial given on the direction-sheet. Pin securely to 
cloth. Make an allowance for extra length if needed. 
How will you do this? Cut out carefully, making all 
notches in the cloth that are indicated in the pattern. 
Remove the pattern from the cloth, fold it carefully 
and put it back in the envelope. Where should the 
pins be put? Fold together the pieces of cloth that 
are left and place them in your sewing-box. 

Make French seams in the gown, sewing them on the 
machine. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name several cotton materials studied in the lesson. 

2. Name the cotton materials that can be used in making 
dresses ; aprons ; underwear. 

3. What cotton materials are used for draperies? 

4. For what kind of dresses should organdie be used? 
gingham ? 

5. For what is cheesecloth used ? 

6. Name any other cotton materials that you know about 
which have not been studied. 

7. Why is it necessary to read the directions with the pattern 
before cutting a garment? 

8. Name different makes of patterns that can be purchased 
at the stores. 



FACTS ABOUT LACE 

Lace is often used for decorating underwear. 
When the right kind is selected it makes a very dainty 
finish. The lace used with muslin, long cloth, or 
cambric should be heavier than that used with 



44 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



nainsook, because the weight of the material is 
different. There are several kinds of lace that 
may be used for underwear, and in order to select 
it wisely one must know (1) the names of the dif- 
ferent kinds, (2) the price that must be paid for a 
good quality, and (3) the points that should be 




Lace Edgings of Good Design 



watched in choosing a design that will launder and 
wear well. 

All lace was originally made by hand, and was 
very expensive. Now a large part of the lace which 
we use is made by machine and is much cheaper than 
the hand-made lace. The machine lace is made in 
the same patterns as the hand-made lace, and the 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 45 

better grades are very pretty. The kinds of machine- 
made lace commonly used for underwear are : 

1 — Valenciennes of two kinds : German, which 
has a round mesh, and French, which has a diamond- 
shaped mesh. Valenciennes laces are suitable to 
use on nainsook or dimity underwear, on long cloth, 
or on crepe. Valenciennes lace is made from cotton 
thread. 

2 — Torchon lace is made from linen thread and 
sometimes from cotton. The cotton torchon is 
cheap in appearance and does not look so well as 
the linen after it is laundered. Torchon laces are 
heavier than Valenciennes laces and are suitable 
to use on muslin, long cloth, or cambric underwear. 

3 — Cluny lace is a heavier lace than torchon. 
Some kinds are very heavy and not suitable for 
underwear, but are used as a finish on such articles 
as doilies, curtains, or dresser-covers. Cluny laces 
of the finer kinds may be used on muslin or cambric. 

4 — Irish lace is a heavy lace, suitable only for 
long cloth, cambric, or muslin underwear. It is 
sometimes used with thin materials in making waists 
or dresses. Perhaps you have seen some one 
crocheting Irish lace. When fine thread is used, 
and the work is well done, it is a very pretty lace 
to use. 

5 — Filet is another lace sometimes used on under- 
wear. It is a square-mesh lace, which means that 
the openings between the framework of the lace are 
square. It comes in both heavy and light-weight 
varieties, and makes a dainty finish on long cloth, 
nainsook, or dimity. Filet is another lace often 
crocheted by women to-day, but most of the lace 
thus made is too coarse to look well on underwear. 



4G SEWING AND TEXTILES 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Bring to school any samples of lace you can find 
at home. Look at the picture of the laces and see 
how many you can recognize. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the nightgown {Continued) 

To make the hems on the gown : The bottom of the gown 
is to be finished with a three-inch hem. Make a guide, 
or gauge, to use in turning the hem ; baste and stitch 
on the machine. On the bottom of the sleeves make a 
| inch hem. Baste and hem by hand. 

Try on the gown to see if the neck is the size you wish. 
If not, trim it around the edges. Turn a \ inch hem 
around the neck ; baste and hem by hand. This hem 
is harder to make because the neck is curved, and in 
order to do it well the hem must be basted very care- 
fully with \ inch basting-stitches. Remove all bastings. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. How was lace first made? 

2. Name the machine-made laces that may be used for 
underwear. 

3. What kinds of lace are suitable to use on muslin, long 
cloth, or cambric underwear? 

4. What kinds are suitable to use on nainsook underwear? 

5. Why is torchon lace not suitable to use with nainsook? 
Valenciennes with muslin? 

FACTS ABOUT LACE {Continued) 

Lace edging is made with one straight edge and one 
scalloped edge. 

Lace insertion is made with two straight edges, 
and is used between two edges of cloth, between 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



47 



two strips of lace edging or insertion, or with beading. 
There are many combinations in which it is used, 
and different ways in which it may be joined in sewing 
to other material. Insertion and lace of the same 
kind come in like patterns, and when both are to 
be used on a gar- 
ment, the patterns 
should be the same. 

Beading is made 
with two straight 
edges and with open- 
ings large enough for 
ribbon of different 
sizes to be run 
through. The open- 
ings for the ribbon 
are of different 
shapes, — square, 
round, rectangular, 
or oval. Beading 
is made from either 
linen or cotton 
thread. 

Lace edging, in- 
sertion and beading 
are usually purchased by the yard, unless many 
yards are to be used, when it is bought by the bolt. 
It is usually cheaper when bought by the bolt. 

The straight side on edging, insertion, or beading 
should be finished with a strong thread which is not 
broken at any point. We sew over this thread when 
overhanding the lace to cloth or other lace, and in 
order to make a good joining the edge of the lace 
must be firm. 




Good Types of Beading 



48 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

When selecting any kind of edging, insertion, or 
beading, see that the pattern is joined together 
securely, without fine threads that are likely to 
break in a short time. The best beading is always 
made with firm, even threads, with the threads 
forming the openings fastened tightly to the threads 
forming the edges. 

Lace edgings launder best which have the least 
number of picots used in finishing the scalloped edge. 
A picot is a tiny loop on the edge of the lace scallop. 

Edging that is about one half inch wide will make 
the daintiest finish for the nightgown, as it is to be 
used with beading. The beading must not be 
wider than the edging. Too much lace, or lace that 
is too wide, will spoil the appearance of the gown. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the nightgown (Continued) 

Textile study : Have several samples of linen, torchon 

and Valenciennes lace edging, and of linen and cotton 

beadings to examine, and let each girl select the piece 

she likes best for her gown. State why the piece was 

selected. From these selections, choose the best pieces to 

use for the gowns. What is the price per yard of each? 

The amount of lace needed for the gown : Measure around 

the bottom of one sleeve and add to this measure four 

inches. How much will be needed for the two sleeves? 

Measure around the neck of the gown and add two 

inches. How much lace will be needed for the neck 

and sleeves? Add to this amount four inches which 

you will use in learning to join lace. 

Beading is to be used around the neck of the gown. 
How much will be needed? Add four inches to this 
amount. Purchase lace edging and beading so that 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 49 

it will be ready to use in class for the next lesson. Be 
sure that the lace comes in one piece, and that it is not 
pinned together where two ends are joined on the bolt. 
Continue work on the nightgown. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. How is lace edging made? insertion? 

2. How is beading made, and for what is it used ? 

3. State the things you should observe when buying lace 
edging ; when buying insertion ; when buying beading. 

4. What is a picot? 

5. How are small amounts of lace bought? large amounts? 
In which way will you buy the lace for your nightgown? 



DYEING 

Cloth is dyed in the yarn, in the piece, or is printed. 
Ginghams are an example of dyed-in-the-yarn ma- 
terials, that is, all the yarn to be used in making 
cloth has been dyed before it was woven. When 
cloth is made in this way the color is alike on both 
sides. If the threads in the material are pulled 
apart, every thread will be found to have the same 
color throughout its entire length. Materials dyed 
in this way are much less apt to fade than when 
dyed in the piece. 

A material that is dyed in the piece is first woven 
and then the piece of cloth is dyed. This is the 
process used in making such materials as calico or 
percale. Materials that are dyed in this way often 
fade badly. When threads are pulled from a dark- 
colored cloth one can often see spaces on the length 
of thread that are white, or not so dark in color as 
the rest of the thread. These spots are where the 
two threads crossed each other in the cloth and where 



50 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

the dye did not reach the thread ; they show that 
the material was "dyed in the piece." 

Either white or colored materials may be 
"printed" with a design which is stamped on the 
surface of the cloth. This is done by passing the 
finished cloth between rollers, one of which stamps 
the design on the cloth. The design is stamped only 
on the right side of the cloth. Dimity and lawn are 
examples of printed materials. Printed materials 
do not launder well, because the printed design is 
likely to fade. Sometimes a piece of cloth is dyed in 
the piece and then printed ; as, for example, colored 
lawns that are figured. 

Dark blue calico that has white polka dots is made 
by first dyeing the piece of material a solid color and 
then removing the spots with chemicals. The chem- 
icals that are used may weaken the thread in the 
cloth, and after it is washed several times the spots 
may become holes because the threads wear out. 

All materials that are colored are dyed by one 
of these methods, whether they are made of cotton, 
linen, silk, or wool. The dye is taken up by the 
different fibers in very different ways. Some ma- 
terials are much harder to dye than others. The 
textile chemist studies the fibers and the way they 
will take the dye, and works out the best methods 
to use. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Study the colored cotton samples in your Textile 
Book and see if you can make a list of six printed 
materials, two "yarn-dyed" materials and two 
' ' dyed-in-the-piece ' ' materials. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 51 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the nightgown {Continued) 

To join the ends of lace: Cut a four inch piece off the 
end of your lace edging. Cut the same from the bead- 
ing. Divide the lace edging into two pieces. Examine 
the two ends to be joined. Place the end of one piece 
over the end of the other piece so that the same parts 
of the design in the lace are together. Pin them in 
this position. Cut off the lapped ends of the lace until 
the lapped part is about one half inch wide. Use a 
thread without a knot. Begin at the plain edge of the 
lace and overhand the two edges together; continue 
overhanding the raw edge of the lace, following the 
pattern edges carefully ; continue across the top of the 
lap and down the second raw edge. Fasten with two 
or three stitches, one over the other. 

The joining should show just as little as possible, and 
the stitches used should be very small, but close to- 
gether so that the lace will not ravel. Always work 
on the right side. 

In joining the beading, follow the directions given 
for joining the lace edging, and in addition overhand 
around the inside edge of the lapped openings in the 
beading. 

To sew lace on the nightgown : Overhand the edges of 
the lace edging and beading together. Do not use a 
knot in the thread. Find the point where the top of 
the shoulder strikes the neck of the gown. Begin at 
this point to sew on the beading. Place the right side 
of the beading and the right side of the gown together. 
How can you tell the right side of the beading? Hold 
the edge of the beading and the edge of the neck to- 
gether, between the first finger and thumb of the left 
hand, with the lace next to you. Overhand together, 
taking small stitches that go through a little of the 
edge of the cloth and through the small holes in the 



52 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

edge of the lace. The joining of the lace ends should 
be done after the lace is sewed on the garment. 

In putting the lace on the sleeve, begin at the seam. 
Hold the lace and cloth over the first finger of the left 
hand between the thumb and second finger, with the 
lace on top. Overhand. By holding the edging in 
this way, it is slightly fulled on the edge of the sleeve. 

EEVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name three methods of dyeing materials ; explain each. 

2. How is printing done? Name some printed cotton 
materials. 

3. How can you tell a "dyed-in-the-yarn" material? 

4. Which type of dyeing is best to use for materials that are 
to be laundered a great deal? 

5. Why does white-polka-dotted blue calico wear out? 



HOW COTTON MATERIALS ARE ADUL- 
TERATED 

Cotton is the cheapest fiber commonly used in 
making materials for clothing. It is not so hard 
to select a good cotton material as it is to select a 
good wool, silk, or linen material, because cotton 
is not so apt to be adulterated. When we say a 
cloth is adulterated we mean that the fiber has had 
some cheaper material combined with it, thus making 
the cloth less expensive and not so good in quality. 
The material added is called an adulteration. For 
example, a piece of woolen cloth, sold as an "all- 
wool" material, in which some cotton is used, would 
be adulterated, and the adulteration would be the 
cotton. 

Since cotton is the cheapest fiber, cotton cloth is 
not adulterated, but sometimes cotton textiles are 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 53 

made of very poor, weak fiber, and the cloth does 
not wear well. Sometimes the bleaching and 
dyeing processes used in manufacturing the cloth 
will be done carelessly, and the chemicals will 
weaken the fiber so that the cloth does not wear well. 
In order to test the strength of a cotton material try 
tearing it lengthwise. If it tears very easily it is of 
poor grade and not suitable for making into garments. 
Thin materials, such as lawn, will tear more easily 
than muslin, and in making such a test this point 
should be remembered. 

Another adulteration used in cotton cloth is 
weighting. Weighting is used to make the cloth 
seem heavier and firmer than it really is. Many 
kinds of gums, glues, clays and starches are used 
for this weighting. After a weighted material has 
been laundered the true quality of the material can 
be seen, as the weighting is largely washed out of 
the cloth. By weaving a material loosely, and 
adding weighting, a cloth of good appearance can 
be made, and unless one knows about this method 
of adulteration, the cloth may seem worth buying. 
By holding a thin cloth up to the light it is often 
possible to see the weighting between the threads. 
In a heavier material the weighting makes the cloth 
feel harsh, and when it is rubbed between the fingers 
a fine powder will rise from it. If a heavily weighted 
material is torn, the weighting can easily be seen 
as it flies from the cloth. Many cotton materials 
have small amounts of starch used in the finishing, 
but when a large quantity is added it becomes an 
adulteration. 

Dotted Swiss is a cotton material in which there 
are dots embroidered with thread. A good quality 



54 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

of dotted Swiss is expensive. Sometimes dotted 
Swiss is made with dots of paste stuck on the 
material. When the material is laundered, the 
dots either disappear or turn a different color from 
the heat of the iron. If one looks carefully, it is 
always easy to discover whether the dots are of 
paste. 

Mercerized cotton materials are made from cotton 
fiber that has been treated with chemicals in such 
a way that a silky appearance is given to the fiber 
and to the cloth made from this fiber. Cotton 
poplin is a mercerized material. Mercerized cotton 
is stronger than ordinary cotton. The silky gloss 
does not wash off when the cloth is laundered. 
Sometimes cotton cloth is starched and pressed until 
it has a silky appearance, and when so finished is 
often sold as "mercerized" cotton cloth. This 
finish comes off in the first laundering. Ileal 
mercerized cotton materials are expensive ; the 
imitations may often be found by studying the 
prices. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the nightgown (Continued) 

Textile study : Have a sample of dotted Swiss to ex- 
amine. If possible, have one sample finished with paste 
dots. Test muslin samples for weighting ; for strength of 
material. Have one mercerized cotton material to study. 

Continue work on the nightgown. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Which of the commonly used fibers is cheapest? 

2. What is an adulteration in cloth? Give an example. 

3. What is the adulteration commonly used in cotton 
materials ? 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 55 

4. Give ways of testing cloth for this adulteration. 

5. In what other ways may cotton cloth be made less 
valuable to use? 

6. What is mercerized cotton? How is it imitated? 

7. Explain how dotted Swiss is adulterated. 

RIBBONS TO USE IN UNDERWEAR 

Ribbons of many widths and kinds are to be 
found in the stores. They are made of silk, silk and 
cotton, or of artificial silk. Ribbons are woven on 
looms. A number of widths of ribbon will be 
woven, side by side, on the same loom, to save time 
in manufacture. Ribbons are made in all kinds of 
designs, and in all colors, and one has a gay assort- 
ment to choose from when buying. When finished 
at the factory, ribbons are wound into round bolts 
with a strip of paper between the layers of ribbon. 
Baby ribbon is sometimes wound on wooden spools. 
Ribbons may be purchased by the yard or by the 
bolt. The number of yards in a bolt varies. Ribbon 
usually costs less when purchased by the bolt, and 
when buying a great deal of ribbon to use in under- 
wear it is more economical to buy it in this way. 

Ribbon for underwear should always be white, or 
of a very delicate color, such as light pink, or blue. 
Bright pink, green, yellow, or rose are examples of 
poor colors to choose. Baby ribbon is the kind 
commonly used for underwear. It comes in many 
qualities. Some kinds are sold as "wash" ribbons, 
which can be laundered. Not all "wash" ribbons 
launder well, however, and it is always better to 
remove the ribbon from the beading before launder- 
ing a garment. The very cheap baby ribbons are 
not firmly woven, and when used pull out of shape ; 



56 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



if there is any strain on the ribbon, it may break. 
Select a ribbon which has a firm edge and holds its 
shape when pulled lengthwise. 

Cotton and linen tapes may be used in underwear 
in place of ribbon. If these are used, they will not 




Copyright by Keystone View Company. 
Ribbon Loom Weaving Silk for Neckties 



have to be removed when the garment is laundered, 
but they do not give so dainty a finish to the under- 
wear as does the ribbon. They are good to use 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 57 

when one has little time to spend on the care of 
clothing. Sometimes crocheted cords are made to 
use in underwear. These are made from cotton 
crochet-thread. 

A tape-needle is used -in running ribbon or tape 
through the beading. The eye of the tape-needle 
is made either lengthwise or crosswise of the needle, 
and is wide enough to hold narrow widths of ribbon 
without crushing them. 

Sometimes, in elaborate underwear, wider ribbons 
than baby ribbons are used. If the garment is 
finished with casings, ribbon may be selected which 
is the width of the casing. Wide beadings, which 
will hold ribbons of different widths, can be pur- 
chased. The ribbon should be the width that will 
pass through the openings in the beading without 
being crushed. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the nightgown (Continued) 

Measure the amount of ribbon needed for the night- 
gown. 

Continue work on the nightgown. 
Feather-stitching in patterns : This may be used on the 
fronts of nightgowns, corset-covers, or combination 
suits. Make some designs on paper that you think 
would be pretty to use for feather-stitching the front 
of a nightgown. Try making one of these on a square 
of long cloth. What kind of floss should you use ? 
Bias casings : These are used in place of lace and beading 
on underwear. Use colored dimity and a square of 
long cloth for making the practice piece. Use the dimity 
for making the bias strips. To cut a true bias, fold 
over the corner of the cloth so that the woof threads 



58 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 




Method of Folding Cloth when 
Cutting a True Bias 



the cloth, connecting the dots, 
measure from the 
line just made, in 
the same way that 
you did from the 
cut edge. Make as 
many strips as de- 
sired. Cut along 
the pencil lines. 

To join two bias 
strips, place the 
ends, with the right 
sides together, so 
that the warp 
threads are parallel 
to each other. Sew 
a plain seam, being 
careful to have the 
edges of the bias 
band even at the 
joining when the 
seam is opened. 



lie parallel with the 
warp threads ; crease. 
This crease shows the 
true bias of the cloth. 
Cut along this crease. 
From the cut edge, 
measure at right angles 
a depth of two inches. 
Make a dot on the cloth 
with a pencil. Use a 
gauge and continue 
measuring at different 
points from the cut 
edge. With a yardstick 
draw a pencil line across 
To make a second strip, 




Method 
And the ' 



of Joining Two Bias Strips 
join", after seam is completed. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 59 

Fold over both of the cut edges of the bias strip one 
fourth inch on the wrong side of the cloth. When 
making this fold, do not stretch the material. Sew 
the bias strip to one edge of the square of long cloth 
in a plain seam, sewing in the crease in the dimity, 
and having the right side of the bias strip and the 
right side of the long cloth together. Baste the other 
folded edge down over the seam in the same way that 




Finished Casing which Might be Used around the Neck of a 
Nightgown 

you did the belt on the apron. Hem, being careful 
that the stitches do not show on the right side. On 
the right side of the bias strip, as close to the seam 
edge as possible, make a row of fine feather-stitching. 
Run ribbon or tape through the casing. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. From what materials are ribbons made? 

2. How are ribbons woven? 

3. How is ribbon purchased? 

4. What colors are suitable for ribbon in underwear? 

5. What may be used in place of ribbons in underwear ? 

6. What is "wash" ribbon? 



HOW SILK MATERIALS ARE MADE 

Silk dress materials, ribbons, stockings and under- 
wear are all made from silk fiber that comes from 
the cocoon of the silkworm. Silk-raising began hun- 



60 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

dreds of years ago in China, when an empress dis- 
covered how silk cloth could be made from the 
cocoon of the silkworm. Most of our silk fiber 
comes at the present time from China, Japan, Italy 
and France. Little silk is produced in the United 
States, because labor is much more expensive than 
in the other countries, and this makes the silk cost 
more. 

The silkworms come from eggs that are laid by a 
moth. The little worm feeds on mulberr}^ leaves 
and grows very rapidly. When the worm is full 
grown, it is three inches long. It then begins to 




Silkworm 

spin its cocoon, which it fastens to twigs. As it 
moves its head back and forth, it throws out two 
tiny streams of thick, sticky fluid, one from each 
side of its head. As the fluid comes into the air it 
hardens and cements the silk fiber of the cocoon. 
It takes three days for the worm to complete the 
cocoon. After the first day the worm cannot be 
seen, but it can be heard working within. 

In order to produce all the raw silk needed, silk- 
worms are grown in nurseries which are specially 
built for this purpose. Some silk is made from 
the fiber obtained from the cocoon of the wild silk- 
worm and is called "wild silk." 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



Gl 



During the fifteen to twenty days after the silk- 
worm has made its cocoon, it changes from a worm 
to a moth. This moth then moistens the end of the 
cocoon and breaks its way out. In order to keep 
the moth from coming through the end of the 
cocoon and thus breaking the silk fiber, the cocoons 




•Silk Cocoons 

are heated so hot that the moths are killed. A 
certain number are allowed to come out, however, 
so that they can lay the eggs to produce a new lot of 
silkworms. 

After this heating process the silk is ready for 
reeling. This is the process of winding the fiber 
from the cocoon. The cocoons are placed in basins 



62 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



of hot water to soften the gummy substance on the 
fiber. Then four or five ends of fiber are started 
from as many cocoons, and are reeled or wound off 
together. This must be done very carefully. The 
silk fiber, as it comes from the cocoon, is 300 to 1400 
yards in length, and is very fine and strong. The 




Silk Moth 

fiber, as it is reeled from the cocoon, is kn©wn as 
"raw silk." The raw silk is made into bales weigh- 
ing from 100 to 160 pounds, and is then ready to 
go to the manufacturer. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the nightgown {Continued) 
Continue work on the nightgown. 



HOW SILK MATERIALS ARE MADE 

{Continued) 

A great quantity of raw silk is brought to the 
United States to be manufactured into cloth, rib- 
bons and other articles. Most of the silk factories 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



63 



are in New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and 
Pennsylvania. 

When the bales reach the factory in this country 
the bundles, or hanks of yarn which make up the bale, 




Copi/rigM by Keystone View Company. 
Weighing Raw Silk, Japan 



are first sent to the throwster. The throwster puts 
the hanks of silk to soak in order to remove more 
of the gummy substance from the fiber ; then the 
skeins are placed on reels, and the silk is wound 



64 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

from the reel on to spools. The spools are then 
placed in a machine which winds and twists together 
two or more strands from the spools so that they 
form one yarn. This yarn is to be used for warp 
threads on the loom and is called "organzine." 
The yarn to be used for woof is not so good a quality 
of silk and is only loosely twisted. It is called 
"tram." 

Silk is dyed in the yarn or in the piece. The best 
grades of silk cloth are dyed in the yarn. In order 
to dye the silk, the gum must be removed from the 
fiber. This is done by boiling the silk yarn, after 
which it is known as boiled-off silk. This gum 
makes up one fourth of the weight of the silk. 
Some manufacturers, in order to make up this loss 
in weight, dip the silk in some material, such as 
chloride of tin, which the yarn absorbs until it often 
weighs twice or four times as much as the boiled-off 
silk. This material added to silk is called weighting. 
This weighting causes silk fiber to crack on creases 
when worn, or to rot and crumble, which often 
happens to silk garments when they are hung away 
in closets for long periods. Black silks are weighted 
more often than the light-colored silks. 

In weaving silks many beautiful patterns are made 
by the use of the Jacquard harness. This is a de- 
vice on the loom which controls and regulates the 
warp threads in the weaving so that the pattern is 
woven into the cloth. This wonderful machine 
was invented in 1801 by Joseph Marie Jacquard, a 
Frenchman. 

Sometimes in silks the patterns are made by 
printing, stenciling, or embroidery. Moire, or 
watered effects, are produced on silk cloth or ribbons 



SEWING AND TEXTILES G5 

by running them through engraved rollers that 
stamp the cloth. 

There are a great many processes that may be 
used in finishing silk materials. Sometimes fifty or 
more will be used before the material is ready to be 
sold as finished cloth. 



HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Collect as many silk samples as you can to bring 
to class. Can you find a piece of ribbon or cloth 
finished in a moire pattern ? Can you find a printed 
silk material? Can you find one that has been 
woven with the Jacquard harness on the loom? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the nightgown (Continued) 

Textile study : Learn to distinguish the following kinds 
of silk cloth, — chiffon, crepe de Chine, China silk, pongee, 
satin, taffeta, velvet. Use samples. Put into your 
Textile Book samples of as many of these as possible. 
What is the price per yard of each ? 

Finish the nightgown : What is the total cost of the night- 
gown? Make a list showing what each article cost 
and put this list in your notebook. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Where are most of the silk factories in the United States? 

2. What does the throwster do with the silk fiber? 

3. What are the warp yarns called ? the woof yarns? 

4. How do the two differ? 

5. How may silk be dyed ? 

6. What is weighting? What kinds of silk are apt to 
contain the most weighting? 



66 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



7. For what is the Jacquard harness used? 

8. How is moire ribbon made ? 

9. Does silk require much finishing? 

10. Which of the silk materials studied would be good to use 
for dresses ? waists ? petticoats ? 

11. When are silk dresses suitably worn? 




The Finished Nightgown 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 67 

TOWELS 

It is necessary that a towel should be soft and that 
it should absorb or take up water quickly. An 
all-linen towel does this better than a cotton or 
cotton-and-linen towel. The all-linen towels are 
the most expensive and for this reason are not 
always used. The material from which towels are 
made is called toweling. It comes in various 
widths and in different kinds and qualities. A 
toweling made of part cotton and part linen is 
called union toweling. 

There are several ldnds of toweling used in making 
kitchen towels. Glass toweling is a smooth, light- 
weight material usually made in checks formed by 
red or blue lines. It is especially good for wiping 
china and glass ware. Glass toweling made from 
linen is the best, but the most expensive. 

There are two kinds of crash toweling used in the 
kitchen : (1) the heavy crash toweling that is used 
for drying cooking utensils, and (2) the finer crash 
toweling used for hand towels. The heavy crash 
toweling is rough and uneven on the surface, while 
the finer grades are smoother. Some crash towel- 
ings are woven with a red or blue stripe down the 
lengthwise edge. 

Towels to use for the face and hands are usually 
made of huckaback and damask toweling s. Hucka- 
back is woven so that the surface of the cloth is 
rough. A rough surface on a towel makes it absorb 
moisture more readily. Huckaback toweling is made 
from cotton, and also from linen. Linen huckaback 
of good quality is a very beautiful material. 

Damask toweling is smooth in finish, and the 



68 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

designs woven in the material are often very beauti- 
ful. It is sometimes made without a design. 

Turkish or bath towels are woven in such a way 
that there are loops over the surface of the cloth, 
and this gives them a very rough surface. 

Towels may be bought ready-made, or the toweling 
may be purchased by the yard and the towels made 
at home. Some of the more expensive huckaback 
and damask towels are woven with finished designs 
across the ends. Guest towels are narrow, short 
towels, often finished with hemstitched ends, cross- 
stitching, embroidery or lace. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

MAKING A TOWEL 

Textile study : Examine samples of glass toweling and 
crash toweling. Examine samples of linen huckaback and 
of cotton huckaback. Which do you think best to use 
for making a hemstitched towel ? 
Materials needed for making the towel : 
f yard huckaback guest toweling. 
No. 60 white cotton thread. 
Needles. 

Cotton floss for cross-stitch. 
Canvas for cross-stitching. 
Hemstitching practice : Use a piece of heavy, coarsely 
woven material upon which to practice hemstitching. 
Straighten the end of the material ; measure in 2\ 
inches from the end on the selvedge ; mark with a pin. 
Pull out four or five of the woof threads, beginning at 
the point marked by the pin ; be careful to pull the 
same thread all the way across the cloth. Turn under 
the raw edge one fourth inch toward the wrong side ; 
turn again to make a hem, bringing the first fold even 
with the edge of the open space made by the drawn 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



69 



threads ; baste the hem very carefully, using one fourth 
inch basting-stitches. 

Knot the thread. Hold the cloth so that the hem is 
held as for hemming. Hide the knot under the fold 
of the hem, beginning as you would for plain hemming. 
Throw the thread up and toward the right, away from 
the hem. Pass the needle under four of the threads, 
pointing the needle down and toward the hem ; pull 
the needle through. Again pass the needle under the 
same group of threads in the same way, but this time, 
before drawing it through, take up a little of the under 




VW/WMfrlllfl 



7~-T 



Method of Hemstitching 

cloth and also a little of the fold of the hem, making 
the needle come out between two groups of threads. 
This ties the group of threads together and also fastens 
the hem. Continue across practice piece. Fasten the 
end with two stitches, one over the other. 

Double hemstitching is made by hemstitching along 
the other side opposite the hem. Practice hemstitch- 
ing until you can do it easily. 



KEVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. What qualities are necessary for a good towel? 

2. Which fiber makes the best toweling ? 

3. What is glass toweling? 

4. What other kinds of toweling are often used in the kitchen ? 

5. Name two kinds of toweling used for face towels. Which 
is better to use ? 



70 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

6. Why is it not wise to hemstitch all towels? 

7. What is the price per yard of linen huckaback? cotton 
huckaback? 

HOW FLAX IS GROWN 

Linen is used in making cloth for dresses, waists, 
suits, table linen, towels, and many other articles. 
Linen fiber comes from the stem of the flax plant. 
The plant is an erect stalk growing twenty to forty 
inches high, with stems branching near the top. 
It has narrow, lance-shaped leaves and a tiny blue 
flower. There are many varieties of flax. 

Flax has been grown for at least five thousand 
years in Egypt. To-day Ireland and Belgium pro- 
duce the best quality of linen fiber. Russia has 
produced a large part of the world's supply of linen 
fiber, but it is of a coarse quality. Flax is also 
grown in France, Egypt, Italy and Holland. Some 
flax is grown in the United States and Canada, but 
it produces a coarse fiber suitable only for making 
coarse materials. 

When flax is to be used for fiber, the seed is sown 
thickly on the ground. This crowding of the plants 
keeps the main stalks straight and unbroken, and 
prevents branching. This slender type of plant 
is the best from which to get the fiber to use in 
making linen. 

Flax is also grown for the seed it produces. Flax- 
seed is used in making linseed oil for paints and 
varnishes, linoleums and oilcloths. The pressed 
linseed cake is used as feed for cattle. Flaxseed is 
also used for poultices and in flaxseed tea. Perhaps 
you have seen it used in this way. 

The flax plant requires great care during its 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 71 

growth. In Europe this work is done by women and 
children who weed the tiny plants, going through 
the fields on their hands and knees. When the 
flax is ready to harvest, instead of cutting it with 
a machine as we do wheat or oats, they pull the 
plants up by hand. The stalks are laid with the 
roots together and are bound into bundles. These 
bundles are stacked or hung up to dry. 




Harvesting Flax by Hand 

When the flax is dried, the next process through 
which it passes is rippling. This is a process in 
which the seeds and dried leaves are removed from 
the end of the stalk. When it is done by hand, 
two men sit, one on each end of a long bench, in 
the middle of which is a large comb which has 
teeth about eighteen inches long, placed a short 
distance apart. The flax is drawn through this 
comb, and the leaves and seeds drop on a sheet be- 
neath the bench. Machines with revolving cylinders 
are now used for this work. The flax stalks are 



72 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

then tied in bundles and are ready for storage or 
for the next process. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the towel (Continued) 

Straighten the ends of the toweling. Make a hem an 
inch wide at each end. How far from the end must the 
threads be drawn for hemstitching in making a hem this 
width ? Baste hems ; hemstitch both ends of towel. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. From what plant is linen fiber obtained? 

2. Where is flax grown? 

3. Which countries produce the best flax fiber? the greatest 
amount ? 

4. Did Russia and Belgium produce as much flax as usual 
in 1915-18? Why? 

5. Describe the flax plant ; its care during growth. 

6. How is flax harvested? 

7. What is the first process through which it goes after 
drying? 

8. For what is flaxseed used? 



THE MAKING OF LINEN CLOTH 

The next process through which the flax goes is 
called retting. This is a very important one and 
it must be carefully done. Retting is the process 
by which the outside woody portions of the stem 
are decomposed or rotted so that they can be removed 
from the inner part, or flax fiber, which is to be used 
in making cloth. 

Retting is sometimes done by placing the flax 
fiber on the ground and allowing the dew, the sun 
and the rain to rot the outer layers of the stalk; 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



73 



or steam and chemicals are used ; or the flax fiber 
may be placed in running water or in pools, where 
it is left until the outer layers are rotted. The last 
process produces the best flax fiber. 

The water in the river Lys in Belgium seems 
especially good for this purpose, and some of the 
best colored, finest and strongest fiber is produced 
in this region. The flax bundles are packed into a 




Retting Flax 
Flax ponds being filled. 

large wooden crate, lined with burlap to keep the 
dirt out, and the fiber is covered over the top with 
fresh straw. The crate is then sunk to a certain 
depth in the water and weighted down with stones 
and sod. It takes fourteen or fifteen days for the 
retting when done in this way, and during this time 
the odor from the flax is very disagreeable and the 
water is often poisonous to fish and cattle. 

The flax fiber is now put through the processes of 
breaking and scutching, during which the outer 



74 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

woody portions are removed from the fiber and the 
fiber is divided into line, the long fiber, and tow, 
the short pieces that have been broken off during 
these cleaning processes. 

Hackling is a process through which the "line" 
passes for the purpose of combing, splitting and 
further separating the fiber into short and long 
lengths. Other processes follow for cleaning and 
sorting the fiber, until the linen fiber is at last ready 
for spinning and weaving. The best materials are 
made from the "line", while the "tow" is used in 
cheaper fabrics. 

Linen cloth is bleached either by the use of chemi- 
cals, or by laying it on the grass and allowing the 
sun and dew to make it white. The last is a slow 
process, but the linen cloth bleached in this way is 
always strongest. In Ireland a great deal of linen 
cloth is bleached in this way. 

Colored linen fabrics are made for dresses and suits, 
but they fade easily in the sun and in laundering. 
Sometimes it is worth while to have a faded dress 
or suit re-dyed, since linen cloth of good quality 
is very strong and should wear well. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Collect at home any samples of linen materials 
which you can find. Perhaps some one has a piece of 
hand-woven linen which you can borrow to bring 
to class. 

If possible, bring some flax seeds to school. Perhaps 
these can be planted in the spring, or in a box in the 
schoolroom, so that you can see how the plant looks 
when it grows. Have you ever seen flax growing? 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 75 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the towel (Continued) 

Textile study : Obtain from some of the linen factories 
a school exhibit showing the various processes through 
which the flax goes before it is made into cloth. Compare 
the cotton fiber and linen fiber. Examine each under the 
microscope. How do they differ in appearance? Write 
a story on " How Linen Cloth is Made " to read in class 
and to put into your Textile Book. 

Continue work on the towel. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Explain the process of retting. 

2. Name other processes through which flax fiber goes 
before it is ready for spinning and weaving. 

3. What is the " line " ? the " tow " ? How is each used ? 

4. How is linen cloth bleached? 

5. Does colored linen hold its color well? 

6. Why is linen huckaback more expensive than cotton 
huckaback? 

SOME LINEN FABRICS 

The huckaback used in the towel made in class 
is one of the linen fabrics that has been studied. 
Crash toweling also is made from linen as well as 
from cotton. Russian crash is a heavy, coarse 
linen often used for porch cushions and for table- 
covers or runners. It is an unbleached material 
which comes in widths from eighteen to thirty-six 
inches, and varies very much in price. 

The best damask for toweling, we have learned, 
is made from linen. Damask is also the name given 
to the linen material from which tablecloths and 
napkins are made. Table-linen or damask is made 



7G SEWING AND TEXTILES 

in many qualities, varying very much in price. It 
is a beautiful material when made of fine linen 
fiber and woven in good designs. Table damask of 
good quality is expensive, but it wears well and is 
worth buying. Sometimes tablecloths are woven 
with a border design on each of the four sides of the 
cloth, and the tablecloth is then called a pattern 
cloth. Table-linen sold by the yard has the border 
design running only along the sides. Napkins are 
always woven so that each has a finished border 
design around the four sides, but they are sold, six 
to twelve, in one long strip and must be cut apart 
before hemming. 

Linen damask is imitated in cotton, and table- 
cloths sold as cotton damask can be purchased at a 
much cheaper price than the linen damask. Cotton 
damask does not have the glossy, smooth finish that 
linen damask has, after it is washed, and stains are 
much harder to remove than from the linen. 

Sheeting, the material from which sheets are made, 
is sometimes made of linen. Linen sheets are ex- 
pensive ; cotton sheeting is generally used. 

The term "household linen" means the sheets, 
pillow-cases, tablecloths, napkins, doilies and towels 
used in the household. Many of the articles, how- 
ever, may be made from cotton rather than linen. 

Handkerchief linen is a fine sheer linen used for 
handkerchiefs, dresses and waists. Linen lawn 
and linen cambric are other very thin, fine linen 
materials used for handkerchiefs, dresses and waists. 
A great many handkerchiefs are now made from 
cotton, but the cloth looks so much like linen that 
it is difficult to tell them apart when selecting them 
in the store. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 77 

Dress linens are heavy materials used for dresses 
and suits. When they are dyed, they are usually in 
plain colors. Sometimes linen sheeting is used for 
making white dresses. 

When we buy an all-linen material, it is expensive. 
Many of our cotton materials are finished like linen, 
but do not wear so well nor retain their finish. It 
is difficult to tell some cotton materials from linen 
materials, and the purchaser often buys cloth she 
thinks is "all linen", only to find later that it is all 
cotton, or part cotton and part linen. There is no 
certain way to judge an all-linen material in the 
store. 



HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Examine the tablecloths used in the school dining 
room, or at home. How wide are they? How is 
the design arranged? What patterns are used? 
Examine the napkins. Examine a piece of cotton 
damask and of linen damask used for tablecloths. 
From among the samples found at home choose 
the ones for the Textile Book. What is the price 
by the yard, and the width of each? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the towel (Continued) 

Cross-stitching initials or a design on the towel : Do you 
remember the sampler about which we talked in one 
of the earlier lessons? This sampler was made with 
cross-stitch. Cross-stitching is made over canvas which 
has been basted to the cloth upon which the design is to 
be produced. Patterns for cross-stitch can be pur- 



78 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



chased. These patterns show the number and arrange- 
ment of crosses necessary to use in making the design, 
and are often printed in the color to be used. The 
patterns can be purchased in dry-goods stores, at the 
pattern departments, or at stores handling art needle- 
work supplies. Usually the canvas can be purchased at 




Cross-stitching 
Canvas basted to towel used as guide for stitches. 



the latter place. Perhaps you can make a design in 
the drawing class. 

Find the middle of the towel end and baste a piece 
of canvas, large enough for the design, on the right side 
of the towel at this middle point, as far from the hem- 
stitching as desired — probably about one inch — so 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



79 



that the warp threads of the toweling and the warp 
threads of the canvas are parallel. 

The cross-stitch is made by crossing two slanting 
stitches. Make all the slanting stitches that run in 
one line and are of the same color, first in one direction 
and then back, thus making the crosses. Place the 
needle as illustrated 
in the drawing. The 
wrong side must be 
made as neat as pos- 
sible by using few 
knots and by doing 
the work in rows. 
When the pattern is 
completed, remove 
the bastings and 
pull out the canvas 
threads, one at a 
time. Practice 
cross-stitching be- 
fore putting the de- 
sign on the towel. Cotton embroidery floss that 
washes well should be selected for cross-stitching the 
towel. Select a very simple pattern or plain initials 
for the cross-stitching. 




Initial Done in Cross-stitch 



EEVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name three linen materials used for toweling. 

2. Name three linen materials used for handkerchiefs. 

3. Name linen materials used for waists ; for dresses. 

4. From what materials are tablecloths made ? 

5. How are napkins purchased when they are to be hemmed 
at home? 

6. What is sheeting? What kinds may be bought ? 

7. In what ways may towel ends be decorated ? 

8. Is it wise to put cross-stitch on "everyday" towels? 
Why? 



80 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

WOOL — WHERE IT COMES FROM 

Many of the garments worn in winter are made 
from wool, which is an animal fiber. A large part 
of our wool fiber comes from sheep. Some wool 
comes from the camel, the angora goat, the llama 
and the alpaca. In the United States, sheep are 
raised in great numbers in the Western States. 
Montana, Oregon, Idaho and Wyoming are the 
principal sheep-raising States. England, Australia, 
Canada, South America and parts of Africa, Spain 
and Germany also produce wool. 

The sheep are sheared in April or May. By this 
process the wool is clipped from the body of the 
sheep and removed in one piece which is called 
the fleece. The shearing may be done by hand with 
large shears made for the purpose, or machine clippers 
may be used when there are large numbers of sheep 
to shear. The fleeces are tied into bundles. WTien 
many fleeces are sent to market from one farm, or 
ranch, they are put into sacks which hold about 400 
pounds each. 

Wool fiber varies from 2\ to 10§ inches in length. 
Merino wool is the finest. Sheep which are well 
cared for and properly fed produce the best wool. 

If you examine a wool fiber under the microscope, 
you will find the outside of the fiber covered with 
tiny scales, or serrations. These serrations lap over 
each other in much the same way as do the outside 
layers of a pine cone. When heat and moisture 
are applied to the wool fiber, the serrations soften, 
and if pressure is used they are locked together. 
This locking together is known as the felting property 
of wool, and because wool has this property it is 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 81 

possible to make from it a good yarn and cloth of 
close, firm texture. 

Besides the making of clothing, wool is used 
in making carpets, rugs, underwear, stockings, 
blankets and knitting yarns which are used for 
shawls, sweaters, caps and mittens. 

Wool is often adulterated by adding cotton fiber. 
If cloth is made of cotton and wool fiber, it should 
be sold as a cotton and wool fabric, and not as 
"all wool." Because there is not enough wool 
produced each year to furnish all that is needed, 
the new wool fiber is mixed, in many cases, with 
shoddy, mungo and extracts. These materials are 
the fibers obtained from old wool cloth, knitted 
wool underwear, and wool stockings which have 
worn out. When old wool rags are sold to the 
junk dealer he, in turn, sells many of them to the 
manufacturers of wool yarns. Flocks and noils are 
short waste fibers left from the spinning and finish- 
ing processes, and these are sometimes added to wool 
yarn. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

MAKING THE TJNDERSLIP 

Look in the pattern book and find a two-piece underslip 
pattern. How is the size of the pattern stated? Of 
what materials could the slip be made? How much ma- 
terial thirty-six inches wide does the description of the 
pattern say will be needed ? Measure from the top of your 
shoulder, next to the neck, down to the bottom of your 
dress ; add four inches to the measurement ; multiply 
this last measurement by two. This will give you the 
number of inches needed for the slip. How many yards 
will be needed? Is this the same amount stated in the 
pattern description as being needed ? 



82 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



If the ruffle is to be made of the same material as the 
slip, more material will be needed. Ruffles for under- 
wear are made from crosswise strips of material. In order 
to know the amount needed, one must know : (1) how wide 
the ruffle is to be, (2) how wide the hem on the ruffle is 
to be, (3) how wide the seam is to be, (4) whether any 
tucks are to be used, and if so (5) what size they are to be, 

and (6) how wide 
the slip is around 
the bottom. The 
length of the ruffle 
should be about 
one and one half 
times the width 
around the bottom 
of the slip. 

Work out the 
following prob- 
lem, using a piece 
of paper upon 
which to practice. 
A ruffle is to be 
put on a slip that 
is two yards 
around the bot- 
tom ; the hem on 
the ruffle is to be 
one inch wide ; 
there are to be three tucks, each one half inch wide, 
finished ; one fourth inch is to be the width of the seam 
where the ruffle is gathered ; the ruffle, when finished, is 
to be six inches wide. 

Materials to be brought to class next time : 
Two-piece pattern for underslip. 
Long cloth — amount required without ruffle. 
Thread — Nos. 80 and 90. 
Needles. 




Method of Making a French Hem 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 83 

To make a French hem : Napkins, tablecloths and some- 
times towels, are finished with a French hem. This is 
made in the following way. Fold a plain hem one fourth 
inch or less in width ; baste ; turn the right side of the 
hem back against the right side of the material above 
the hem ; make a crease in the cloth that comes just 
even with the fold of the hem; overhand along this 
crease, running the needle through the creased cloth and 
the fold of the hem, making small stitches close together. 
When the overhanding is finished, press out the crease, 
making the hem lie in the same position as a plain hem. 
Practice making the French hem at school. 
At home, hem a napkin or towel, which should be 

brought to school for inspection when finished. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Where is wool fiber obtained? 

2. Where is the greatest wool-producing section in the United 
States? 

3. What is the "fleece"? 

4. What is meant by the "felting property" of wool? 

5. In what ways is wool used? 

6. In what way is wool adulterated ? 

7. What is shoddy? How and why is it Used ? 

HOW CLOTH IS MADE FROM WOOL 

When the wool reaches the woolen mill, it is 
unpacked and sorted. The wool is dirty and greasy, 
and one fleece contains fiber of several lengths. 
The oil in the fiber is known as the yolk. If you 
have ever put your hand on the back of a sheep, 
you know how oily the wool feels. This oil protects 
the fiber and keeps it soft and elastic. The wool 
from the head, sides and back of the sheep is finer 
in quality than that from the belly or shins. The 



84 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



fleece is usually separated into six or seven grades 
for spinning yarns of different qualities. 

The wool is now ready to be washed, or scoured, 
and this must be done very carefully with soft, 
warm — not hot — water and soft 
soap. The wool passes through a 
series of tanks during this process, 
and in each tank is pushed back and 
forth by means of wooden forks which 
carry it forward. 

The wool fiber is next dried in a 
machine called a "hydro-extractor", 
and is then beaten into 
a fluffy mass. All of 
the oil has been re- 
moved during the 
scouring, but in order 
to make the wool soft 
and elastic and better 
for spinning, olive oil 
is added to the fiber. 
The wool may be 
cleaned still further by 
the use of a machine called a burr- 
picker, which takes out any burrs, 
leaves, or other dirt which the sheep 
have picked up in the pasture and 
which did not come out in the 
scouring. 

There are two kinds of yarn made 
from wool fiber : (1) worsted and (2) woolen. Worsted 
yarn is made from wool that has been combed until 
all the fibers lie parallel before they are twisted into 
yarn. Worsted yarns are stronger than woolen 




Construction op 
Woolen Yarns 




Construction of 
Worsted Yarns 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 85 

yarns. They are made from long fiber, the short fiber 
being removed in combing. Worsted yarn is the 
more expensive, and is used in making high-grade 
worsted materials and underwear. Woolen yarn is 
made from the short fibers, so treated that the fibers 
are running in every direction when the yarn is ready 
for weaving. Woolen yarn is more " fuzzy" than 
worsted yarn. Worsted yarns are used for making 
materials that are to show the weave very plainly, 
as in serge, while woolen yarns are used to make 
cloth with a fuzzy surface, the weave of which does 
not show distinctly, as in broadcloth. 

Wool is dyed either in the yarn or in the piece. 
It dyes very easily. Printed designs and elaborate 
Jacquard designs are not used so often as in silk and 
cotton materials. 

Wool cloth goes through various finishing processes, 
depending upon the kind of material being made. 
One of the most interesting of these is napping, 
which is used in making such materials as blankets. 
This is done by passing the cloth between rollers 
covered with teasels. The sharp points on the teasel 
pull up the fiber ends on the surface of the cloth 
and make a heavy nap. Sometimes this nap is 
clipped until it is even and shortened. The short 
fiber clipped from the surface is sometimes felted 
into the back of a poor quality of woolen cloth to 
make it appear heavier. These short ends often work 
out as the garment made from such cloth is worn, 
and sometimes are found in the bottom of pockets, 
along seams or hems, or between the lining and wool 
material of a coat. Dress, coat and suit materials 
of wool must be pressed and wound into bolts to 
make them ready for the market. 



86 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Collect as many wool samples as you can to bring 
to school. Has any one some wool she can bring to 
school ? If the teacher will get a wool exhibit from 
some of the manufacturing firms, it will be interest- 
ing to study. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the UNDERSLiP {Continued) 

Read the directions on your pattern. Open the pattern 
and measure the length to find if it needs changing. 
Lengthen or shorten it in the same way that you did the 
nightgown. Follow directions for cutting given on the 
pattern. Make narrow French seams down the sides, 
sewing on the machine. Use felled seams on the shoulders. 




The Construction of a Felled Seam 

To make a felled seam : Make a plain seam one fourth 
inch wide, but do not overcast the edge. Cut off one 
side of the seam one eighth inch. Fold the wide side 
down one eighth inch and over the narrow side of the 
seam. Lay both sides of the seam flat on the cloth 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 87 

with the narrow side under the wider side. Baste to 
the cloth. This seam may either be hemmed by hand 
along the fold, or it may be stitched by machine. In 
making the underslip, hem it down by hand, as it will 
look daintier and show less. Felled seams are used 
in making corset-covers, drawers, some kinds of petti- 
coats, and men's shirts. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. What is the first process through which the wool goes 
after it reaches the woolen mill? 

2. Of what value is the "yolk" in wool? 

3. Explain the process of "scouring." 

4. Through what other processes may wool fiber go before 
it is spun? 

5. What kinds of yarn are used in making wool materials ? 

6. Give the process for making each kind. 

7. For what types of material are the different kinds of 
yarn used ? 

8. How is wool material dyed? 

9. Explain the process of "napping." 

10. What is the "fuzz" often found in hems and along 
seams of wool dresses and coats ? 



WOOL MATERIALS COMMONLY USED 

There are so many kinds of wool cloth that it 
would be impossible for us to learn the names and 
to know all of them in one lesson. Wool materials 
of the best grades are expensive, and the price will 
indicate something in regard to the quality. There 
are always a large number of standard wool materials 
on the market, and in addition many novelty ma- 
terials appear each year. A novelty material is one 
that is made for only one or two seasons, and while 
the design or weave is unusual, the price is high 
and often the quality is poor. It is not a wise plan 



88 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

to buy novelty materials if one is trying to select a 
material that will wear well for a long period without 
going out of style. 

Serge is one of the commonly used wool materials. 
There are many types of serge on the market. 
Serge is made of worsted yarn in a twilled weave. 
It comes in plain colors, dark blue being one of 
the favorite colors. It is used for making suits, 
skirts and dresses. It is forty-two to fifty-four 
inches wide, and varies much in price. 

Cheviot is somewhat like serge. It is heavier and 
sometimes rougher in finish. It is used for suits 
and coats. Some cheviots are called " diagonals." 

Tweed and homespun are two materials used for 
suits and coats. Both were originally made by 
hand, but now are made by machinery. In some 
sections of the Southern States homespun cloth is 
still made by the mountain people. Homespun is 
a loose, rough material made of coarse yarn. Tweed 
was first made in Tweed, Scotland. It is a rough, 
loosely woven cloth that is usually woven of several 
shades of yarn, giving a mixed effect with no distinct 
pattern. 

Broadcloth is made from woolen yarns. It is a 
beautifully finished material, soft and smooth, with 
a glossy finish on one side. It is used for suits 
and dresses. Broadcloth of a good quality is very 
expensive. Ladies' cloth is much like broadcloth, 
but is not so heavy. It is used for suits and dresses. 

Alpaca, mohair and brilliantine are three fabrics 
somewhat alike. They are all very smooth, and are 
finished with a glossy surface that sheds dust well. 
Fiber from the llama is used in making alpaca. 
Mohair and brilliantine are made of fiber from the 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 89 

Angora goat. All three of these materials are used 
for dresses and dust coats, and sometimes for men's 
suits. Ail three of the materials are mixtures of 
cotton and wool. 

Albatross, cashmere, challie and Henrietta are 
light-weight materials used for dresses, wrappers 
and babies' clothes. Challie is often used for girls' 
dresses. It is made in flowered or figured design, 
the design being printed or woven into the cloth. 
Henrietta and cashmere are made in twilled weave 
and are much alike. 

Flannel is a soft, napped material used for babies' 
clothes, petticoats, dressing-jackets, shirts, and for 
many other purposes. It is a material every girl 
should be able to distinguish. 

Melton and covert cloth are used in making over- 
coats. They are heavy, firmly woven materials. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Find the price by the yard of the following : serge, 
broadcloth, cheviot, flannel, and of any of the other 
materials mentioned in the lesson. 

How are blankets purchased ? What do they cost ? 

Examine the rugs at home to see whether the 
face of the carpet is like the back in any of them. 
Can you find out the names of some carpets used 
at home ? How is rag carpet made ? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the UNDERSLIP (Continued) 

Textile study: Examine samples of materials studied 
in lesson. Mount samples in Textile Book. Make one 



90 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

inch of twill weaving on your textile weaving-card. This is 
done in the following way. First row, under three threads 
and over three threads, under three and over three, across 
the row. The second row is begun by bringing up the 
needle one thread farther to the right than in the group 
over which the needle passed in the first row; then con- 
tinue over three and under three, etc. Third row: the 
needle should be brought up one thread farther to the 
right than in the group over which the needle passed in 
the second row, then continue over three and under 
three, etc. This weaving forms a diagonal line of stitches 
that go over the warp threads. Can you find the diagonal 
in cheviot or serge ? 

Continue work on the slip. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Name three materials for men's suits. 

2. Name four light-weight materials used for dresses. 

3. Name two materials suitable for dust coats. 

4. Name two materials used for men's overcoats. 

5. What is the difference between cheviot and serge? 
between broadcloth and ladies' cloth? 

6. How is flannel used? 

7. What is a standard material? a novelty material? 

8. Is it wise to buy novelty materials? Why? 



EMBROIDERY TO USE ON UNDERWEAR 

All embroidery on cloth was originally done by 
hand. Now only a small part of the embroidery 
used is hand-made, as we have machines that can 
imitate hand embroidery on cloth. Perhaps you 
know some one who has a piece of old hand-made 
embroidery that you can examine. The stitches 
are beautifully made, and some of them are very 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 91 

tiny. This kind of sewing was very slow work, and 
if all the embroidery were done by hand to-day 
we could not use it as freely as we do on underwear, 
dresses and waists. When we have time, beautiful 
garments can be made by decorating them with hand 
embroidery, provided the design is well selected 
and the work neatly and evenly done. 

Machine-made cotton embroideries are made on 
cambric, batiste, nainsook and Swiss. Cambric and 
nainsook embroideries are generally used for under- 
wear, because the material on which the embroid- 
ery is made is the same in weight as the cloth from 
which the garment is made. Swiss and batiste em- 
broideries are used in trimming dresses and waists 
that are made of such materials as organdie, Swiss, 
batiste, lawn, or dimity. 

The term embroidery includes embroidery edging, 
insertion and beading. Entre deux is a very narrow 
insertion called " seam beading " because it is used 
between the two edges of cloth that are to form 
the seam. This is made in the same materials as 
embroidery edging, and also in voile. 

Embroidery edging is usually finished with one 
edge in embroidered scallops, and the other a raw 
edge. Sometimes the finished edge is made with 
a machine-hemstitched hem instead of the scallops. 

In selecting an embroidery edging, one should 
look at the edge of the scallops to see whether they 
are well finished. Several strips of embroidery edg- 
ing are. woven on one piece of cloth, and when fin- 
ished the strips are cut apart and are also cut along 
the edge of the scallops. Sometimes the thread 
that finishes the edge of the scallops is broken or 
cut; in this case the edge will be apt to fray out 



92 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



after the embroidery is laundered. Always select 
an edging with a firm uncut scallop. 




Good Types of Embroideries 



Either insertions or edgings that are made with 
openwork designs in which heavy parts of the 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 93 

pattern are held together with fine thread are not 
best to select when one wishes the embroidery to 
wear well. Embroidery made in simple designs, 
instead of very elaborate or poorly constructed 
designs is always the better selection. Cheap em- 
broidery spoils the appearance of a garment and 
lessens its value because it will very soon become 
shabby in appearance. If one cannot afford to buy 
good embroidery, it is better to use none at all, 
and to finish the garment in some other way. 

Insertion is usually sold with a strip of the cloth 
left on each side of the insertion. Sometimes the- 
edges are both finished with a scallop such as is used 
on the edging. 

Beadings are sold with a strip of the cloth down 
each side of the beading. They come in various 
widths. 

Embroidered material used in making waists and 
yokes comes in widths like cloth, and is called all- 
over. Embroidery flouncings are wide embroidery 
edgings, often wide enough to make the length of a 
petticoat or dress skirt. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Find any samples of embroidery that you can to 
bring to school. Get prices of as many as possible. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the underslip (Continued) 

Textile study : Examine samples of embroidery. Which 
kinds are good to use with long cloth? Which are of 
the best design? Why? Examine the scalloped edge. 
Mount samples in Textile Book. Look in the encyclo- 



94 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

pedia and see what you can find about hand-made em- 
broidery. Write a story on this subject to read at school. 

To make the placket in the underslip : There are several 
kinds of plackets that may be used for the slip and on 
petticoats. One of them is the hemmed placket. Down 




Back-stitching 

one side of the placket make a one fourth inch hem, 
running the hem to a point at the bottom of the placket. 
Down the other side make a hem three fourths inch 
wide, running it down straight. Lap the wide hem 
over the narrow hem and make two rows of back- 
stitching across the bottom on the right side and through 




Placket 
Method of making the continuous placket — bound and faced. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



95 



both hems. A hemmed placket cannot be used if the 
slip is exactly the right width across the back. Why 
not? 

Back-stitching is made by taking one running-stitch 
over and one under the cloth ; then bring the needle 
back and put it in the hole made by the end of the first 
stitch, and bring it out the distance of one stitch beyond 
the end of the second stitch. Pull the thread through. 
Bring the needle back 
and put it in the hole 
made by the end of 
the second stitch ; then 
bring it out the distance 
of one stitch beyond the 
end of the third stitch 
and pull the thread 
through. Repeat until 
the work is completed. 
Always work on the 
right side of the ma- 
terial. Why? Back- 
stitching on the right 
side looks like machine- 
stitching. 

Another placket which 
may be used is the con- 
tinuous placket, bound 
and faced. Cut a length- 
wise strip of material twice the length of the placket and 
twice the desired width, allowing for seams. Place right 
side of facing to right side of garment. Baste in a very 
narrow seam, about one fourth inch down and up the 
sides of the placket. At the bottom of the placket run 
the seam to a point, making it as narrow as it will hold. 
Stitch seam, remove bastings. Turn under the other 
edge of facing one fourth inch. On the side of the placket 
to be used for the buttons baste this folded edge along 




The Finished Placket 



96 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

the line of stitching, so that the raw edge of the seam 
is inside. The part of the facing that is to be used for 
the buttonholes should have the under part cut out, 
as in the picture. Then baste this side of the facing 
flat to the garment. Hem the entire length of the 
placket by hand. Lap the top of the placket over the 
bottom ; baste across the lower end of placket, and 
stitch across the end as shown in the picture. 

Practice making the plackets. Make one of the 
plackets on the slip, making the placket-opening of the 
length indicated by the pattern. 

Estimate the amount of embroidery edging needed for 
the bottom of the slip. Buy edging,, four inches, or not 
more than six inches wide. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. How is embroidery made ? 

2. What kinds of embroidery are suitable for underwear? 
for thin dresses and waists? 

3. What points should be noticed in buying embroidery 
edging ? 

4. What is entre deux? 

5. How is insertion used on a garment ? 

6. What is embroidery flouncing? 

7. If embroidery edging were not used, how could the slip 
be finished around the bottom ? 



KNITTED UNDERWEAR AND STOCKINGS 

Knitted underwear and stockings are made on 
special machines which loop the threads together 
instead of weaving them. The knitting may be 
plain or ribbed, or both kinds may be used in one 
garment. In using both kinds, one must take the 
garment from one machine, in which plain knitting 
is done, and put it into another to do the ribbing. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 97 

The ends of sleeves and the legs of drawers in 
underwear are often finished in this way. 

Knitted goods ravel out badly when a stitch in the 
garment is broken, and for this reason stockings and 
underwear should be mended as soon as the break 
appears and before it has raveled and become a 
large hole. 

Stockings are made in different ways. The cheap- 
est stockings are made by knitting one long tube 
and cutting it into desired lengths, after which the 
heel and toe are sewed and the stocking is shrunk 
into shape. The best stockings are knitted in a flat 
piece, shaped exactly as desired for the stocking, 
and the shaped piece is sewed together on sewing- 
machines made for the purpose. This seam runs 
down the leg of the stocking and along the bottom 
of the foot to the toe. This stocking is called "full- 
fashioned." Stockings are made of cotton, wool, 
silk, or lisle, which is an especially prepared cotton 
thread. Cotton and lisle stockings are most com- 
monly worn ; silk are the most expensive and not 
suitable for hard usage. Wool stockings are some- 
times worn in winter. 

Some stockings are made from artificial silk which 
is a manufactured product made in several ways and 
is used to imitate true silk. The best grades of 
artificial silk stockings wear better than the poor or 
medium grades made of true silk, and cost much less. 
Artificial silk is also used in making dress materials, 
sweaters, neckties, ribbons and dress trimmings. It 
can usually be distinguished by its high luster. 

The usual kinds of underwear are made of cotton, 
wool and silk, or of combinations of cotton and wool, 
or of silk and wool. Knitted underwear, to be warm, 



9S SEWING AND TEXTILES 

must be loosely woven. The open mesh of the 
weave holds air in the material and makes the 
garment a warmer one because the heat from the 
body does not pass so easily through this still air. 
The loosely woven material also permits plenty of 
air to remain next the skin. Two loosely woven 
garments, one over the other, keep the body warmer 
than one very heavy, tightly woven garment, because 
of the air space between them. 

Knitted underwear absorbs the moisture given 
off by the body and must be made of material that 
will take up and give off the moisture quickly. Wool 
takes up the moisture quickly. Cotton knitted 
underwear is often loosely woven and so treated that 
it absorbs readily. 

Any garment worn next to the skin must be 
laundered often to remove the secretions and dirt 
given off from the body. A dirty garment loses its 
power to absorb, and when moisture is left next the 
skin it makes the skin feel cold and uncomfortable. 

Wool is warm, but many people find it irritating 
to the skin. Wool is hard to launder because it is 
apt to shrink and become harsh when the washing 
is carelessly done. A wool and silk combination is ex- 
cellent for winter underwear, but it is very expensive. 
Cotton is often used for knitted underwear, and while 
it is not so warm as wool it is much liked by many 
people, and is much easier than wool to launder. 

The kind of underwear worn depends on the 
climate, health, occupation and age. In houses 
kept at summer temperature in winter, it is unwise 
to wear underwear that is too warm. It is better to 
wear warmer wraps when going out of doors than to 
keep the body too warm while in the house. The 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



99 



union suit is a garment that covers the body evenly 
all over, which is perhaps better for many people 
than to wear the drawers and shirt which make a 
double thickness over the abdomen. 

At night always hang up the underwear so that it 
can air thoroughly. Never sleep in underwear 
worn during the day. 



HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Can you find out the price of the stockings you are 
wearing? Of what are they made? Are they 
ribbed or plain? Find a full-fashioned stocking 
and bring it to school. What does a winter union 




Method of Joining Embroidery 



100 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



suit cost? Of what is it made? What is the price 
of cotton stockings ? of silk stockings ? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the underslip (Continued) 

To join embroidery : Match the pattern in the ends of 
the embroidery, either between the scallops or through 
the middle of a scallop. Sew in a plain seam. Button- 
hole along the raw edges instead of overcasting. Find 




The Right Side of the "Join" 

the middle of the length of the ruffle, measuring from 
the seams, and mark with a pin. Begin at the seam 
and gather to the pin. Gather the other half on 
another thread. Follow the directions for gathering 
which were given for the apron. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 101 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. How is knitted underwear made? 

2. How are cheap stockings made? 

3. How are full-fashioned stockings made? 

4. Of what materials is knitted underwear made ? 

5. How should we decide upon the kind of underwear to 
use? 

6. Why must underwear be changed often? 

7. How should underwear be cared for at night? 

8. Can you name any other knitted articles made by 
machine ? 



THE COST OF CLOTHING 

Have you ever thought about the cost of the 
clothing you wear, and also about how much money 
is required each year to buy it? Perhaps you have 
gone shopping with your mother and have learned 
the price of some garments. Every family has to 
spend money every year for clothing, but the amount 
spent varies with the size of the family, the needs of 
the family, the amount of the income, and the judg- 
ment of the person spending the money. Every one 
must have a place to live, food to eat and clothing 
to wear. In addition, there must be money to spend 
for schoolbooks, music lessons, carfare, coal and 
many other necessities. Besides this, some money 
should be saved every year. 

The wise home-maker, therefore, makes a plan 
for spending the money available each year, or the 
income, as it is called. This plan will show how 
much is to be spent for food, for clothing, for shelter, 
for running or operating expenses, and for entertain- 
ment, education, church, charity and savings. When 
such a plan is made, it is called a budget. 



102 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

In order to know just how much money is actually 
spent each month, and during the entire year, a 
record of expenditures is kept, and this record is 
called a household account. At the end of the year, 
by checking up this household account, one can 
find whether more or less money has been spent for 
each division than the amount planned in the 
budget. 

Many persons spend more money for clothing than 
is necessary because they do not buy wisely ; they 
select materials and garments that do not wear well, 
that fade, that are not suitable for the purpose, or 
that do not launder well. Persons who are careless 
about the care of their clothing spend more money 
than those who keep their clothing repaired, pressed 
and clean. Every girl should remember that her 
clothing is expensive, and should consider it her 
duty to take as good care of it as possible. 

In order to realize the cost of clothing, it would be 
well for each girl to keep an account of the money 
spent for her clothing each year, even though she 
does not buy it herself. Such an account will be 
begun in the "Clothing Book." Perhaps each 
member of the class will continue keeping it, so that 
when she begins buying her own clothing she will 
know the usual price of each article. 

The buying of "fads ", exaggerated styles, or 
novelty materials is not wise when clothing must 
be worn for very long periods. Fads in clothing 
go out of fashion quickly and must be discarded. 
The better plan is to select standard materials of 
good quality and then have the garments made in 
such a way that they may be worn two or even 
three years without being out of fashion. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 103 

Ready-made garments often cost more and wear a 
shorter period than do garments made at home. 
Sometimes, however, it is a wise plan to buy ready- 
made clothing, especially when one is busy and when 
energy and strength must be saved for the daily 
work. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Make a list of all the articles of clothing you have. 
Ask your mother to tell you the price paid for each 
article, if possible. Which garments, if any, are 
to be worn more than one year ? What is the total 
amount spent for your clothing ? 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the UNDERSLIP (Continued) 

Textile study: Make a booklet consisting of several 
sheets of plain white paper with a cover of brown or other 
colored paper. Decorate this cover in any way you wish, 
making the title " The Clothing Book." When you have 
completed your list of clothing with the costs, put the 
items in the book in this manner : 

Shoes 

1 pr. high shoes for school $ 5.00 

1 pr. best shoes 5.00 

1 pr. pumps 4.00 

1 pr. rubbers 1-00 

Hats 

1 school hat 3.50 

1 best winter hat 5.00 

1 best summer hat 5.00 

1 sun hat = 1-00 



104 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



Dresses 

1 gingham dress (made at home) 
1 percale dress (made at home) 
1 serge dress (ready-made) . . 



$ 3.00 

2.00 

12.00 



Continue until the list is complete. 



To finish the bottom of the slip : Try on the slip and 
straighten the lower edge by marking an even distance 

from the floor around 
the bottom of the 
slip, using a yard- 
stick to measure up 
from the floor. After 
taking off the slip, 
trim off around the 
bottom by following 
the marks. Make 
a hem two inches 
wide. In basting 
down the hem on 
the curve, it may be 
necessary to lay some 
tiny pleats ; do this 
by straightening out 
the folded edge, mak- 
ing the pleat, and 
then folding down 
the edge across this 
pleat. Stitch the 
hem by machine, thus 
finishing the bottom 
of the slip. 
To put on the ruffle : The ruffle is to be put on with a 
tuck. Measure up from the bottom of the hem on 
the slip the width of the ruffle ; mark with a pin ; three 
eighths inch above this pin make a second marking. 
Measure from this second mark to the bottom of the 




Straightening the Bottom of the 
Underslip 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 105 

hem ; what is the length of this measurement ? Measure 
up this distance from the bottom of the hem on the 
slip; mark with a pin; measure up from the bottom 
of the hem every four or five inches, so that you have 
a row of pins around the slip. Make a fold along these 
pins, folding so that the crease is on the right side of 
the slip; baste; three eighths inch from the fold just 
made, stitch on the machine around the slip so that a 




Method of Putting Ruffle on with a Tuck 

tuck will be formed when the work is finished. Use 
the gauge on the machine when making this tuck. Re- 
move bastings. 

Place the seam in the ruffle at the middle of the back 
of the slip so that the bottom of the ruffle is even with 
the bottom of the slip, with the raw edge at the top 
under the tuck ; pin ; the point where the two gather- 
ing threads meet in the ruffle should be pinned to the 
middle of the front of the slip and under the tuck. Pull 
the gathering into place and fasten. How will you do 
this ? Pin the ruffle to the slip at several places around 
the slip, being sure to divide the gathers evenly. Baste 
with one-fourth-inch stitches along the gathers, keeping 
the line of stitching straight. 

Bring the tuck down over the raw edge of the ruffle 
so that the fold of the tuck just covers the gathers; 



106 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

baste with one-fourth-inch stitches just a little above 
the fold of the tuck and through the tuck, ruffle and slip. 
Stitch by machine along the fold of the tuck. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. What is a budget ? a household account? 

2. Why are both useful to the home-maker? 

3. Why should girls keep an account of the cost of their 
clothing? 

4. Why do persons often spend more for clothing than they 
should ? 

5. What is a "fad"? Should most people buy fads ? Why? 

6. How may clothing be made to wear a long time ? 

7. When may ready-made garments be wisely bought ? 



THE CARE OF CLOTHING 

The length of time a garment may be worn can 
be very much increased by proper care. Good care 
of clothing requires that some thought and energy 
shall be used every day, but since a well-cared-for 
garment wears longer and always looks better, the 
effort is worth while. 

When garments are taken off they should be well 
aired before they are put away. Hang waists over 
chair-backs, and petticoats, underwear and stockings 
over chairs at night, so that they are well aired by 
morning. Never throw down in a heap clothing 
that is to be worn again, because crumpled clothing 
does not look well. 

When garments are to be put away they should be 
so arranged that they will be wrinkled as little as 
possible. Coats and dresses should be kept on 
hangers. Skirts may be kept on hangers, or may be 
hung up by two loops of tape, one on each side of the 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 107 

skirt at the band. The loops should be hung over 
hooks arranged at such a distance apart that the 
band hangs straight. Waists should be folded 
straight and laid in drawers or boxes. Do not 
pack too many waists in one drawer, as this is apt 
to crush and wrinkle them. Cover-bags may be 
used over dresses or coats that are not often worn. 
These bags will protect the garments from dust and 
dirt of various kinds. A cover-bag is described 
in the section on Christmas Gifts. 

Wool clothing should be brushed often, and spots 
should be removed as soon as possible after they are 
discovered. 

Cotton and linen clothing must be washed care- 
fully. The color should Jbe " set " in a material before 
it is laundered the first time. Salt, vinegar and 
sugar of lead are materials used for setting colors. 
Perhaps you can find the method of doing this in 
some of the bulletins or books in the library. 
Colored materials should not be hung in the sun to 
dry. 

Wool skirts, coats and suits should be pressed 
often enough to keep them fresh in appearance. 
A wrinkled skirt, with the pleats out of shape, can 
never look well, and the person wearing such a 
garment is not well dressed. In pressing wool, if 
the material is pressed on the right side, a cloth is 
always used between the material and the iron. 
The cloth is usually dampened and placed over the 
material, and the cloth is pressed until it is dry. 
The pressing may be continued on the wrong side. 
Much practice is necessary before pressing can be 
done well. Garments may be sent to pressing and 
cleansing establishments to be pressed, but this is 



108 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

expensive, and many garments can be pressed at 
home and look well if the work is carefully done. 

Hooks and eyes, snap fasteners and buttons should 
always be sewed on as soon as they come off the 
garment. A skirt or waist that is pinned together 
looks very untidy, and an untidy person is never a 
well dressed person. 

Stockings should be mended neatly and never 
worn with holes in them. Garments that need 
patching should be mended carefully, and before they 
are laundered, if possible. 

Hats should be brushed with a soft brush to remove 
the dust, and when worn only occasionally should 
be kept in a box or drawer away from dust. 

Shoes that are kept clean and polished wear longer 
and look neater. When heels become worn and 
uneven the shoes should be taken to the repair shop 
to have the heels straightened, for " run-down" heels 
look very untidy. Shoe laces should not be used 
after they are broken. Knots in the laces spoil the 
appearance of the shoes. Shoe buttons should always 
be replaced as soon as they come off. Rubbers that 
are muddy should be washed before being worn again. 

Every girl wishes to look well dressed, and to 
effect this every garment must be neat as well as 
becoming. No garment looks neat unless it is 
well cared for. Every girl should form the habit 
of keeping her clothes in good condition, and should 
learn to do the work herself. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Ask some one to show you how to press your wool 
skirt or dress. Perhaps you can do this at school, 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



109 



with the help of the teacher. Remember to use a 
piece of cloth between the wool and the iron. Wear 
the skirt or dress to school for inspection. 

Bring to school a stocking that needs darning. 



LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the undeeslip {Continued) 

Darning a stocking : Lay aside the slip and practice darn- 
ing the stocking you have brought from home. Trim 
around the edge of 
the hole so that there 
are no ravelings and 
the edge is even. 
Use four-strand 
darning-cotton and 
a darning-needle. 
For heavy stockings 
two strands of darn- 
ing-cotton should be 
used, but for fine 
stockings use a 
single strand. Do 
the darning on the 
right side. Begin 
far enough from the 

hole so that the worn places around the hole, if any, are 
covered with the first rows of running-stitches. Begin 
about one fourth inch from the hole, or farther away if 
the stocking is worn. 

Make running-stitches back and forth in rows close to 
each other ; make the rows of different lengths. Leave 
a loop of thread at the end of each row ; this allows for 
the shrinkage of the thread and prevents the darn from 
drawing up after it is laundered. When the hole is 
reached, make a few running-stitches up to the hole, 




Method of Making a Stocking Darn 



110 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

then extend the thread across the hole and continue 
with running-stitches; turn and repeat, keeping the 
rows close together, with the edge of the hole under the 
threads that run across the hole. Continue the rows of 
running-stitches beyond the hole in the same way as 
in beginning. 

Turn the darn so that other rows of running-stitches 
are made across the first rows, and weave the thread 
under and over the threads covering the hole, as in plain 
weaving, finishing each row with running-stitches. Re- 
peat until the hole is filled, keeping the threads close 
together. A darn should be smooth, so that it will not 
hurt the foot, and when made with one or two strands 
of darning-cotton it will not be uncomfortable to wear. 

Darn one pair of stockings a week at home until the 
end of school. Bring them to school for inspection and 
comparison with the darning done by others in the class. 

Continue work on the underslip. 

EEVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. Why should clothing be carefully looked after and 
repaired ? 

2. How should garments worn during the day be cared for 
at night? 

3. What is the best method to use in hanging clothing away? 

4. How should wool clothing be cared for? 

5. How should colored materials be treated before launder- 
ing? 

6. How should shoes be cared for ? 

7. How much of the work of caring for your underclothing 
do you do yourself? 

REMOVING STAINS 

Stains not only make a garment look badly, but 
often make it practically useless. With care many 
stains can be removed without injury to the cloth. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 111 

Stains are more easily taken out of wash materials 
before they are laundered. If one knows what has 
caused the stain it is always easier to remove it, 
because different stains are removed in different 
ways. 

To remove stains successfully it is necessary to 
use the right kind of equipment. This should con- 
sist of granite or earthenware bowls, probably one 
large and two small ones will be enough; some 
medicine-droppers which may be bought at the 
drug-store ; and bottles in which to keep the various 
stain-removers. Stains are very difficult to remove 
from colored materials because in many cases the 
color is injured in doing the work. In removing 
many stains from white linen or cotton materials, 
a bleaching agent will have to be used. Javelle 
water is one of the best bleaching agents, but it must 
be used carefully to prevent injury to the cloth. 
Javelle water is made as follows — 

1 lb. sal soda 1 qt. hot water 

\ lb. chloride of lime 2 qts. cold water 

Dissolve the sal soda in the quart of boiling water. 
Put the chloride of lime in the cold water, allow the 
mixture to settle, then pour the clear liquid into the 
sal-soda solution. Put in a tightly corked bottle 
and keep in a dark place, for light and air cause it 
to lose its strength. When using, add an equal 
amount of clear water to the portion of Javelle 
water. 

Another bleaching agent is oxalic acid. This 
is made by dissolving one ounce of oxalic acid 
crystals in three fourths cup of hot water. The 
crystals are purchased at the drug-store. 



112 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

Some stains can be removed by using something 
that will absorb them and which is called an absorb- 
ent. Absorbents are used principally for removing 
grease stains. Those commonly used are blotting- 
paper, talcum powder, starch, French chalk and 
fuller's earth. 

Some stains can be removed by using a material 
that will dissolve them. These materials are called 
solvents. The most common solvent is water. 
Other solvents often used are gasoline, ether and 
chloroform. Gasoline, ether and chloroform should 
be used out-of-doors, or by an open window, and 
always where there is no fire. 

The following methods may be used in removing 
some of the common stains : 

Fruit stains in white wash material. Pour boiling 
water through them; use a bleaching agent when 
necessary. 

Coffee and tea stains on white wash material. When 
cream has been used in the tea or coffee, rinse with 
cold water ; then pour boiling water through the 
stain; bleach if necessary. Stains made by clear 
coffee or tea should have boiling water poured 
through them without rinsing in the cold water; 
bleach if necessary. 

Grass stains on white or colored material. Use 
cold water ; if the stain is fresh, use soap and cold 
water. When on white wash materials, a bleaching 
agent may be used. 

Ink stains. On white wash material use a bleach- 
ing agent. 

Grease and oil stains. Use an absorbent; or 
warm water and soap ; or a solvent. 

Paint stains. Use chloroform or turpentine. An 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 113 

old paint stain on white material may be removed 
with a bleaching agent. 

When removing a stain from colored materials, 
always test a sample of the cloth before using the 
stain-remover on the cloth. Sometimes the stain 
will show less than the spot that is left after removing 
the stain. 

Wool materials, when stained very badly, should 
be sent to the "dry-cleaners." Grease spots can 
usually be removed successfully at home. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
making the underslip (Continued) 

Textile study : Remove an ink stain from a white 
cotton fabric. Stretch the material across the top of a 
small bowl, with the stain over the middle of the bowl ; 
dampen the stain with water, using a medicine-dropper ; 
apply the bleaching agent with the medicine-dropper; 
use a second dropper and apply clean warm water to the 
stain ; use the bleaching agent again ; rinse ; repeat 
until the stain is removed ; rinse with a little ammonia 
in the water ; rinse very thoroughly with clear water. 
Dry before pressing. 

Remove a grease spot from a wool material. Place a 
layer of clean, white blotting-paper underneath the spot 
and one on top of the spot ; press with a hot iron. Per- 
haps it will be necessary to try warm soap and water. 
Apply this with a piece of cloth or sponge ; rinse with 
warm water. When using any other solvent than water, 
place the stain over a piece of blotting-paper on a flat 
surface and rub with a cloth or sponge dipped in the 
solvent ; rub towards the center of the spot, as this helps 
to avoid the " ring " often formed around the spot. Some- 
times rubbing the surface near the spot with the solvent, 



114 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

spreading it out over the surface, helps to remove the 
" ring." 

Continue work on the underslip. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1 . What three groups of stain-removers are commonly used ? 

2. Give examples of each group. 

3. Should a bleaching agent be used on colored materials? 
Why? 

4. How may grease spots be removed from wool materials? 

5. How should the following stains be removed from white 
wash materials: clear coffee, grass, paint, and ink? 

HEALTHFUL CLOTHING 

Every girl, at the present time, wishes to be 
healthy and strong. She wishes to be strong enough 
to enjoy tramping, playing tennis, riding horseback, 
sweeping, or hoeing in a garden, without being " worn 
out." No one can do any of these things easily 
unless the clothing she wears permits perfect freedom 
of the body and is comfortable in every way. 

A healthy body is kept so by frequent bathing, by 
changing underclothing often and by wearing suitable 
clothing. It is necessary to bathe the body oftener 
than once a week. Many people take a bath every 
day, and when one forms the habit of doing this one 
feels uncomfortable unless the bath is taken regularly. 

Underclothing worn next to the skin should be 
changed two or three times a week if it is to readily 
and thoroughly absorb the moisture from the body. 
Underclothing should fit in such a way that it does 
not draw or pull at any point. Union suits are very 
uncomfortable if they are too small and should not 
then be worn. Wool underwear that is carelessly 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 115 

washed shrinks and becomes harsh because the loose 
mesh and the fibers are felted together. Wool 
underwear should be washed in warm — never hot 
— water, with a mild soap, should never be rubbed 
but always squeezed to remove the dirt, should be 
rinsed in water the same temperature as that in 
which it is washed, should be squeezed — not 
wrung — and should be dried in a warm place, but 
not over a hot register nor close to a hot radiator or 
stove. 

Stockings should be chosen to suit the temperature 
in which they are worn. Thin silk or transparent 
stockings worn in winter with low shoes are not 
healthful because much body heat and energy is 
being wasted in keeping the body warm that would 
better be used for the necessary functions of the 
body. Then, too, a person never seems well dressed 
who appears cold and uncomfortable. Stockings 
should be changed very often, because the moisture 
from the skin of the foot soon soils the stocking and 
causes it to lose the power of absorption, thereby 
making the foot feel cold and damp. Some people 
change their stockings every day. 

Shoes ought to be comfortable, which means that 
they must fit the shape of the foot, must be wide 
enough and long enough, and be made with com- 
fortable heels and soles. A shoe should fit the 
instep and heel snugly, should be straight on the 
inside line, should have a heel broad enough to 
balance the body well and a toe wide enough to give 
the toes plenty of space. A high narrow heel is not 
suitable when worn all the time, especially if one 
is to be on her feet a great deal ; it causes "broken 
arches" and may make one nervous and cause pain. 



116 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

A shoe should have a sole thick enough to keep out 
dampness and to make walking easy. In stormy 
weather rubbers keep the feet dry and also prevent 
the rotting of the thread used in making the shoe. 

Tight corsets or waistbands are not only very 
uncomfortable but often cause ill health. Corset 
waists and corsets should fit well and be loose 
enough to allow perfect freedom of the body. Skirt 
and waist bands should be tight enough to stay in 
place, but not tight enough to stop a free circulation 
of blood through the body. No one looks well in 
tight clothing. A fleshy person who wears tight 
corsets and bands pushes the body into such a 
position that the flesh shows more than it would if 
the waist were left the normal size. 

Wearing too much clothing is as unhealthful as 
wearing too little. Select the amount and kind that 
will suit the climate, the age, the work one is doing 
and the state of health. Sick people and old people 
require more clothing than young people who are 
strong and well. A person working out of doors in 
winter requires more clothing than a person who 
works in the house all day. Every one requires less 
clothing in warm weather than in winter. Remem- 
ber that clothing has a great deal to do with the 
state of health, and that it should be selected very 
carefully if the body is to be kept in a healthy 
condition. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the UNDERSLip {Continued) 

To finish the neck and armholes of the slip : The neck is 
to be finished with narrow embroidery edging, about 
one inch in width. Select a pattern that matches or 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



117 



looks well with the pattern in the embroidery used in 
the ruffle. Enough embroidery edging should be pur- 
chased to go one and one third times around the neck 
and each armhole. How will you measure for this 
amount ? Divide the embroidery into three pieces — 
one for the neck and one for each armhole. How will 
you do this? 

Make a one-eighth-inch hem on each end of the piece 
for the neck. Gather ruffle one fourth inch from the 
edge. Join the 
ends of each 
piece for the 
armholes, using 
the same joining 
as used in the 
ruffle. Gather 
each one fourth 
inch from the 
edge. 

Trim around 
the neck and 
armholes. Find 
the middle of 
the length of the 
embroidery for 
the neck, and 
pin this to the 
neck of the slip 
at the middle of 
the front so that 
the right side of 
the embroidery 
is against the 

right side of the slip, and the raw edges are together. 
Pin the ends of the strip to the ends of the neck in the 
same way. Pull the gathers into position ; fasten the 
gathering thread ; divide the gathers evenly around 




Method of Basting Bias Strips around 
Armhole 



118 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

the neck, and pin into place at several points. Baste 
ruffle to slip along line of gathering. 

Cut a bias strip of the long cloth one inch wide, as 
you did for the bias casing. Begin at the back of the 
neck, place the edge of the bias strip even with the raw 




The Finished Underslip 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 119 

edge of the seam just made, with the bias strip on top 
of the embroidery ; baste along the line made by the 
first seam, holding the bias strip slightly fulled instead 
of stretching it. This will make a seam of three thick- 
nesses of cloth. Stitch the seam by machine. Remove 
bastings. 

Turn in the other edge of the bias strip one fourth 
inch toward the wrong side. Turn the bias strip down 
on the wrong side of the slip, drawing it down smoothly 
from the seam, and baste along seam edge to hold in 
place. Baste the folded edge of the facing to the slip. 
Perhaps you will have to stretch the folded edge a 
little to make it lie smoothly. Turn in the ends of the 
bias strip and overhand the folded edges to the edges 
of the placket. The bias strip may be stitched on the 
machine along the folded edge, or it may be held in 
place with feather-stitching done on the right side of 
the underslip along the folded edge of the bias strip. 

Finish the armholes in the same way. The seam in 
the embroidery should be joined to the slip at the 
under-arm seam. When basting the bias strip in the 
seam with the embroidery, it may be necessary to hold 
it a little fuller than you did around the neck, because 
the armhole is more curved. 
To fasten the underslip : Sew on two or three small buttons 

down the placket, making buttonholes to match. 
To shorten the underslip : In order to make the slip the 
right length, one or two tucks may be made just above 
the tuck for the flounce. These tucks can be let out 
when the slip needs lengthening. Use the tucker on the 
machine for doing this. Follow the directions given for 
gauging the width of tucks as given in the machine book 
of directions. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1 . What effect does clothing have on health ? 

2. What points should be remembered about underwear 
for the healthy person? 



120 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

3. How should wool be washed? 

4. Discuss stockings in relation to health. 

5. What kind of shoe should be selected ? 

6. Should tight clothing be worn? Why? 

7. What things must be considered when selecting clothing 
that will be best for you to wear? 



SELECTING A WASH DRESS 

When one selects material for a wash dress there 
are several things to be remembered: (1) Is it a 
becoming color? (2) Is the design in the cloth 
right for the figure? (3) Will it launder well? 
(4) Will the material wear well ? 

A wash dress has to be laundered often, therefore 
a material that shrinks badly or that is poorly dyed 
is not a good selection. Our study of textiles has 
shown that some cotton cloth is loosely woven, 
that it is often made of cheap fiber, and that it may 
have sizing added. When selecting a wash-dress 
material, the best plan is to test a sample at home 
before buying the material. Test it by washing 
in warm, soapy water, drying and ironing. If the 
material shrinks or fades badly it is not a wise 
selection for a wash dress. It should not fade 
in the sun. Cover one half of the sample with a 
piece of cardboard on which is placed a book, and 
leave the other half uncovered ; place the sample in 
the sunlight for several days to see whether it will 
fade. 

Material in which there is a great amount of 
sizing should never be selected ; but remember 
that many kinds of cloth are starched in the finishing 
process, so that a starched surface does not neces- 
sarily mean that the cloth is poor. A very cheap 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 121 

price usually indicates a very poor material. Often 
on bargain counters are cheap materials that may 
offer a temptation to buy, but unless one has had a 
good deal of experience in selecting materials it is 
unwise to buy at the bargain counter. 

Linen materials are often used for dresses, but 
linen wrinkles easily and, as it is expensive, is not 
generally used for the everyday dress. Linen cloth 
does not soil so quickly as cotton cloth, because the 
surface is smoother and does not take up the dirt so 
easily. Colored linen materials usually fade badly. 
However, we like to have dresses made of linen 
because of their beauty and "feel." 

Besides selecting the colors that launder well, it 
is necessary, in selecting any dress, to choose the one 
that is becoming in color. There is no complexion 
that cannot be improved by selecting the color 
best suited to it. Individuals are divided into 
two general groups according to their complexion : 
(1) blondes, and (2) brunettes ; but there are many 
types of blondes and many types of brunettes. It 
is impossible to give any set rules in regard to the 
choice of color because of the difference in types 
and because color affects each individual differently. 
The color selected for the dress should depend upon 
the complexion, the color of the hair and eyes, the 
size of the person, and the occasion when the dress 
will be worn. 

Large people should be careful not to emphasize 
their size by wearing bright colors, or large or con- 
spicuous designs in materials. Bright, intense colors 
are usually not a wise choice for any dress, not only 
because they make one conspicuous, but also 
because they become very tiresome if the garment 



122 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

must be often worn. Bright colors may be used 
appropriately as touches here and there on a dress. 
Party dresses are often made of brighter colored 
materials than should be used for the school or 
street dress. Dark blues, greens and browns, 
although good colors to select for wool suits and 
coats, wool or silk dresses, are not best to select in 
wash materials, because they are hard to launder. 
Lighter blues, greens, lavenders, pinks, buffs and 
tans are colors very much used in wash dresses. 
Pinks should not be too vivid, as paler shades are 
more becoming. 

To decide on the color for a dress requires thought 
and study of one's self. Trying on a dress while 
standing before a mirror may lead one to change 
one's mind about the color. Observe other people 
to learn how certain colors affect their appearance. 
Perhaps you have studied color in connection with 
your art work. The knowledge so gained can be ap- 
plied in selecting the color for your clothing. Color 
is the first thing that attracts or repels in a costume, 
and should be considered first when selecting a dress. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
PLANNING THE WASH DRESS 

Textile study : Test samples of pink, lavender, light 
blue and buff chambray to find out how they will launder, 
and also whether they will fade in the sun. 

If possible, test colors on girls of different types before 
the class. Half-yard lengths of silk, wool, or cotton ma- 
terials may be used to drape around the shoulders of the 
girl. 

Select colors suitable for wash dresses to wear to school ; 
select colors suitable for a coat; colors suitable for a 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 123 

party dress. Select the most becoming colors for the 
chambray dresses to be made in class. 

Study the pattern book and select a pattern for a one- 
piece dress of any simple design, which would be suitable 



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Four Steps in Making a Hemmed Patch 

to use for a chambray dress. How much chambray will 

be needed? 

To make a hemmed patch : A hemmed patch is used 
where there will be a good deal of strain on the material 
and where it is not objectionable to let the stitches 
show. It would be used when patching such articles 
as a boy's trousers, or under the arm of a corset-cover 
or slip. The piece of cloth used for making the patch 



124 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



should be like the garment to be patched. Cut a square 
or rectangular piece of cloth for the patch, large enough 
to cover the hole and extend beyond the worn part, 
allowing one fourth inch extra all around the piece for 
turning. Turn down on to the wrong side one fourth 
inch on all four sides of this piece. Find the middle 
of the patch and place this over the middle of the hole 
on the wrong side of the garment ; pin into place, hav- 
ing the warp threads in the garment and in the patch 




Four Steps in Making an Overhand Patch 



parallel. If there are stripes, checks, or figures, the 
patch must be pinned so that they match. Baste along 
folded edge of patch ; hem by hand. 

Turn garment to right side and cut around the edges 
of the hole until it is square or rectangular in shape, 
making the edges of the hole at an equal distance from 
the folded edge of the patch. At each corner of the 
hole make a one fourth inch cut on the diagonal of the 
cloth. Turn the edge of the hole down one fourth 
inch on to the patch, making the corners square. Baste 
along fold ; hem by hand. Remove all bastings. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 125 

To make an overhand patch : This patch is used where 
there will be little strain on the material, and where it 
would be objectionable to have the stitches show. A 
hole in the skirt of a wash dress or in a waist may be 
mended with this patch. Cut the hole square or 
rectangular in shape ; make a slanting cut at each corner, 
as you did in the hemmed patch. Turn under this edge 
all around the hole one fourth inch. Measure the 
length of the sides of the hole. Cut the patch one 
half inch longer each way than the size of the hole, 
making the design in the material match before cutting. 
Turn the edge of this patch down one fourth inch all 
around toward the wrong side. Lay the folded edge 
of one side of the patch to the folded edge of one side 
of the hole, with the right sides together. Match the 
design carefully, or in plain material be sure that the 
warp threads of the patch and garment are parallel. 
Baste the folded edges together so that they can be 
overhanded. Overhand along the folded edges. Re- 
move bastings. Repeat the process on each edge of 
the square. When it is finished, cut off a tiny triangle 
of cloth at each corner of the piece used for the patch, 
so that the fullness is removed. Overcast each edge 
of the patch and each edge of the hole separately. This 
patch, when well done, scarcely shows on the right 
side. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. What four points should be considered when selecting a 
wash-dress material ? 

2. How may wash materials be tested? 

3. When is it wise to purchase "bargains"? 

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of linen 
material for dresses? 

5. How should colors for a dress be selected? 

6. What colors are good for suits or coats ? 

7. How should very bright colors be used? 

8. Is color in dress important? Why? 



126 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

THE BECOMING DRESS 

Clothing is worn for protection, for modesty and 
for adornment. Clothing has power to make one 
look ridiculous, undignified and conspicuous, or it 
may make one appear dignified, attractive and per- 
haps beautiful. Clothing also has the power to 
make one feel comfortable and at ease, or self- 
conscious and ill at ease. 

A really well dressed person never wears con- 
spicuous clothing. When one looks at a well 
dressed person it is the person herself and not the 
dress that first attracts attention. The clothing 
worn should be so selected that it sets off any good 
points about the face or figure and covers up defects. 

Young girls do not need much decoration on their 
clothing. No one should follow the " latest style" 
unless it is becoming. In any season there are 
styles that can be selected which are becoming and 
are often much more beautiful than the extreme 
styles. Besides selecting a suitable color for the 
dress, one must select a becoming color for the hat 
and wrap, and all three garments must harmonize 
with each other. A coat of pronounced color, 
such as mustard color, or bright green, is not the 
best selection if it must be worn with dresses of 
different colors, because some of the dresses will 
not harmonize with the color of the coat. A street 
coat of pronounced color is never a good choice when 
the garment must be worn more than one season, 
because it is usually very much "out of style" the 
second season. 

Besides selecting the proper color for clothing, it is 
necessary to select the right design in the material. 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 127 

Very large, brightly colored designs in cloth should 
not be selected by one who is large in size. Bright 
plaids are not a wise selection for the stout person ; 
neither are wide stripes a good choice. Narrow 
stripes may be used, provided there is not too much 
contrast in the color and width of the stripes. 
Plain colors, when of the right shade, are often 
the best selection for the stout person ; very small, 
inconspicuous designs in the material may, however, 
be used. A glossy surface on cloth like satin always 
makes one appear larger if used for an entire gar- 
ment. Tall thin people can often improve their 
appearance by wearing materials designed in large 
plaids or, perhaps, in large figures of the right 
colors. 

The structural lines of a dress have much to do 
also with the effect on the figure. The stout or short 
person should emphasize the vertical, or up-and- 
down line, of the costume. This may be done by 
having unbroken lines of trimming down the length 
of the dress ; by using narrow belts that are of the 
same material as the dress ; by avoiding the use of 
wide belts, or of deep yokes on waists or skirt ; by 
never using bands of trimming or tucks running 
in horizontal lines, and by avoiding ruffles. The 
dress must not be extremely tight, nor should it 
hang too loosely, as either arrangement makes one 
look larger. 

The tall thin person needs to emphasize the hori- 
zontal line in her costume, being careful not to bring- 
out, with the lines, the objectionable angles. 

Never choose the dress pattern because it is in style 
unless the structural lines are adapted to the figure. 

Hats and hair-ribbons must suit the lines of the 



128 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

face. Hair-ribbons often make a girl look ridiculous 
because the bow is too large for the size of the head 
and face. 

The only way to learn how to select the well 
designed costume is to study one's self carefully, 
remembering that the selection of the right color 
is very important, and that structural lines may do 
much to improve one's appearance. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Find in the fashion books designs for dresses : 
(1) emphasizing vertical lines, and (2) emphasizing 
horizontal lines. Bring the designs to class for 
discussion. Cut out and mount them in "The 
Clothing Book" ; state under each design what lines 
are emphasized and how it is done. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 
MAKING THE WASH DRESS 

Study the pattern to be used for the dress. How should 
it be laid on the material to be most economical of cloth ? 

Does the length of the pattern need changing? How 
will you do this? If tight-fitting sleeves are too long, 
take a tuck across the pattern two inches above and two 
inches below the elbow, to make the right length. When 
the sleeve is too short, cut the pattern across two inches 
above the elbow and two inches below the elbow, and pin 
between the pieces of the sleeve strips of paper wide enough 
to give the needed additional length ; shape the edges of 
the sleeve. Lay the pattern on the material after it is 
adjusted. 

Pin all the pieces of the pattern to the material. Cut 
out the dress. Follow the directions for making which 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 129 

are given on the pattern. Gingham dresses are usually 
made with plain seams. All basting and fitting must be 
done carefully. The dress should be straightened around 
the bottom before hemming. How did you do this on 
the underslip? 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. For what purposes is clothing worn? 

2. What effect does clothing have on one's appearance? 

3. What kind of clothing does the well dressed person select ? 

4. What designs in material are suitable for the large person 
to wear? 

5. Do you think the person of average size has much diffi- 
culty in selecting becoming clothing? 

6. What kind of structural lines should be used in the 
costume of a stout person? of a tall, thin person? 

7. In what ways are these structural lines emphasized? 

S. How can one decide about the type of clothing one 
should wear? 

APPROPRIATE CLOTHING 

A girl is well dressed if she has selected clothing 
that is appropriate to the occasion when it is to be 
worn, that is suitable for her circumstances, that is 
correctly designed, and is made of materials suitable 
for her age. 

Dresses and hats decorated with much trimming 
are not suitable for a schoolgirl at any time. Velvet 
and satin are materials which are unsuitable for a 
young girl to wear. Simple silk dresses may be 
worn for "dress-up" occasions, provided they are 
suitable to the community in which the girl lives. 
A girl never looks appropriately dressed when she 
wears clothing that may make her companions feel 
uncomfortable because it is more expensive than 
that which they are wearing. The girl who selects 



130 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

for her Commencement dress one that is much more 
elaborate than that of any other girl in the class 
does not look appropriately dressed. Many schools 
now adopt the plan of having the entire class wear 
the same type of clothing in order to avoid just 
such ill feeling as may be caused by the girl who is 
not kind enough to consider her companions. Girls 
graduating from the eighth grade should wear for 
Commencement simply made white wash dresses 
with black or white low-heeled pumps or shoes ; never 
satin or silk dresses, with French-heeled slippers, 
gloves and hats ! 

Simple wash dresses, or simply made wool dresses, 
are appropriate selections for school. The dress 
worn by the business girl should be plain and designed 
to give perfect freedom for doing her work. The 
wash dress is most appropriate for kitchen wear. 
A housekeeper looks very badly dressed when she 
wears soiled, partly worn, wool or silk dresses in the 
kitchen, or when she goes about her work with her 
hair uncombed. 

Waists, dresses, or other clothing made from cheap 
materials or trimmed with coarse, cheap lace and 
embroidery make one appear poorly dressed. No 
well dressed person selects such clothing. When 
she cannot afford to buy the elaborate clothing made 
from good materials, she selects the simpler clothing 
of good quality and with less trimming. 

When a good quality of cloth is selected for a 
dress, use trimmings that are of as good quality, 
or else go without trimming. Cheap pearl buttons 
often spoil an otherwise attractive garment. Fre- 
quently, by removing the cheap buttons when they 
are used as trimming, or by replacing them with 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 131 

good pearl buttons, a garment will be greatly 
improved in appearance. 

No matter how carefully the dress has been chosen 
and designed, unless the hair is properly arranged, 
the hair-ribbon of the right color and size, the shoes 
and stockings of the right style, and the proper 
amount and kind of jewelry worn, the girl does not 
look appropriately or well dressed. No young girl 
needs to curl her hair ; she should never use the 
curling-iron on it, as this breaks and injures the hair. 
The hair should be arranged in a simple way, and 
when a ribbon is worn, the color of the ribbon must 
suit the girl's complexion and must harmonize in 
color with the rest of her clothing. A girl should 
never use powder or paint if she wishes to look properly 
dressed. Shoes must be polished and stockings in 
good order, to look well with any dress. A girl 
should wear little jewelry. Nothing spoils a girl's 
appearance more than wearing cheap jewelry. 

Every girl wishes to be well dressed, and to achieve 
this the clothing must be neat, made of good ma- 
terials, of the proper color and design, with the right 
structural lines, and appropriate to the time, the 
place and the circumstances. It is every woman's 
duty, and usually her desire, to look well dressed ; 
therefore it is worth while for the girl in school to 
begin to study clothing with the thought in mind 
of selecting that which is appropriate for herself and 
which will make her unconscious of her appearance. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

From the fashion book select pictures of garments 
which you consider proper to wear: 1, two dresses 



132 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

for school ; 2, a coat ; 3, two wash petticoats ; 
4, a combination suit or slip ; 5, a party dress. 
Find a picture of the proper kind of shoes to wear 
to school ; of a suitable hat for school ; of a suitable 
hat for "dress-up" occasions. Bring them to school 
for discussion. Cut out and mount in ' * The Clothing 
Book." 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the wash dress {Continued) 

Continue work on the dress. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. When is clothing appropriate? 

2. Discuss " Commencement " clothing. 

3. What kind of dress is appropriate to wear to school? 

4. How can a dress be spoiled with trimming? 

5. Discuss the selection of hair-ribbons. 

6. Under what conditions may a beautiful dress look badly? 

7. What points must a well dressed girl consider when 
selecting her clothing? 

SOME POINTS FOR THE CONSUMER 

It is estimated that the women of the United 
States spend a billion of dollars a year for textile 
materials. Many women know very little about 
buying textiles, which explains why there are many 
cheap and adulterated materials put on the market. 
The cheap and adulterated materials make it difficult 
for the woman who is a careful buyer to select good 
materials. We have no Pure Textile law in this 
country to protect us from adulterated fabrics, as 
the Pure Food law protects us from adulterated 
food. In order to buy intelligently and wisely, one 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 133 

must study textiles so that one may learn the quality 
and price of good materials. 

When buying materials by the yard, several points 
should be considered : 

1. Know exactly the amount of material needed. 

2. Know the amount of money that can be spent 
for the material. 

3. Know which are the best kinds of materials to 
select for the purpose and for the price to be paid. 

4. Know the points that show good quality in 
textile materials, so that those selected shall be 
worth the price paid. 

5. Remember always that materials good of their 
kind should be selected, rather than cheap quality 
in the more expensive types. For example, it is 
better to buy a good quality serge which costs less 
than a good quality broadcloth, than to buy the 
cheap quality of broadcloth at the same price as 
the good quality serge. 

Firmly woven materials usually wear longer and 
hold their shape better than loosely woven materials. 
A garment of all-wool material holds its shape better 
than one made of part wool and part cotton, and 
when selecting materials for dresses, coats, or suits, 
it is wise to buy all-wool if one can afford to do so. 

A soft, pliable silk is usually less likely to be 
weighted, and will wear better, than a heavy, stiff 
silk. A silk material should be firmly woven 
because when loosely woven it is apt to pull out at 
the seams. "Bargains" in silk are usually not a 
wise selection, because the silk is apt to be of poor 
quality or has been injured in some way. Both 
wool and silk are expensive fibers and no one should 
expect to buy cheap materials made from them. 



134 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



In buying ready-made garments, there are many 
things to be considered : 

1 . Is the garment made under sanitary condi- 
tions? Many undergarments, cheap waists and 




Method of Making Embroidered Scallops 



dresses are made in sweat-shops that are dirty, poorly 
aired and in every way an unfit place for women 
and girls to work. Often such garments are made 
in homes where conditions are not sanitary and 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



135 



where, perhaps, there is sickness. The girls and 
women in sweat-shops work long hours for low 
wages. Garments made under these conditions are 
often cheaper than those made under good condi- 
tions, but are not sanitary. The best ready-made 




ft iff 'MMMJtS- 






A Page from the Clothing Book 

garments are made in light, well ventilated, clean 
work rooms, by women and girls who receive good 
wages for their work. Inexpensive as well as costly 
garments are often made under these good conditions. 
Many garments made under good conditions are 



136 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

labeled with the Consumers' League label. This 
is a printed tag, fastened to the garment, and can 
be used only by factories where the working condi- 
tions meet the standards of the League. Perhaps 
you have seen garments with this label. 

2. Is the material of good quality and suitable for 
the garment ? 

3. Is the garment well made, so that the seams 
will hold and the trimmings not pull apart ? Coarse 
or crooked stitching spoils the appearance of a 
garment. Ready-made garments, such as dresses, 
coats, or suits, may often be bought at a lower 
price when purchased "out of season." Winter 
garments are sold for less in January and February, 
and summer clothes in July and August. If one 
selects a garment of a style that will look well the 
following season, it is economy to buy "out of 
season." 

When planning the wardrobe for any season, first 
look over all garments left from the previous year 
to see which can be mended or made over; then 
decide what new garments will be needed. It 
requires careful thought and planning to buy wisely, 
and whoever wishes to make the best use of her 
money must know many things about textiles before 
she can make the best selections. 

HOME PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 

Write a composition on "The Selection of Cloth- 
ing" to read in class. Put this in "The Clothing 
Book." 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 137 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the wash dress (Continued) 

Collars and cuffs of a contrasting material may often 
be used on the wash dress. White pique or heavy 




Designs in Blanket-stitch 
These may be used on the edges of collars and cuffs. 

linen may be used with chambray. Figured materials may 

be used as trimming on garments made of plain material ; 

if the garment is of 

figured material use 

plain material for col- 
lars, cuffs, etc. With 

a figured material, 

never use braids put 

on in patterns. 

To use the blanket- 
stitch on a collar : 
Fold a narrow hem 
on the edge of 
the collar; baste. 
Make the blanket- 
stitch over this hem, 
using cotton em- 
broidery floss to 
match 01* harmonize Method of Making Blanket-stitch 




138 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



with the color of the dress. The stitches may be made of 
different lengths, so that points are formed in the design. 
To use the chain-stitch on a collar : Fold a hem on the 
edge of the collar ; baste. Hold the hem in place with 
chain-stitching. Chain-stitching is always done on 

the right side of the 
material. Begin with a 
knot. Bring the needle 
through from the wrong 
side, hiding the knot 
under the folded edge 
of the collar. Put the 
needle into the hole 
through which the thread 
just came, and make a 
stitch one eighth inch in 
length, bringing the point 
of the needle through the 
loop of thread formed by 
bringing the thread out 
and putting the needle 
back in the same hole. 
Pull the loop into place, 
so that it is flat on the 
cloth but not drawn out 
of shape. Put the needle 
into the hole inside the 
loop through which the 
thread just came, and 
make a stitch one eighth 
inch in length, bringing 
the point out over the 
thread ; draw the loop into place. Continue in this way. 
The material should be held so that the needle points 
towards the worker when each stitch is taken. Making 
the stitches even makes the work uniform. Chain- 
stitch should be made with heavy embroidery floss. 




Method of Making Chain-stitch 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 139 

To scallop the edge of the collar : Draw a design for the 
scallops to be used on the edge of the collar ; trace on 
the cloth, being sure to follow the shape of the collar as 
given in the pattern. Make a row of running-stitches 
along the tracing of the scallop on both the outside 
and inside edge. Chain-stitch through the middle of 
the scallop ; this is to be used as padding in order that 
the scallop may be rounding on top when finished. 
Finish the scallop by blanket-stitching. The stitches 
should be made close together and so that they cover 
the rows of running-stitches and the chain-stitch. Use 
embroidery floss that is not too heavy, or the work will 
look coarse. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. How much money do the women of the United States 
spend for textiles every year? 

2. Is it as difficult to choose pure textiles as it is to choose 
pure food? Why? 

3. What points should be remembered when buying textile 
materials by the yard ? 

4. What points must be remembered when selecting silk? 
wool? 

5. What is the work of the Consumers' League ? 

6. What points should be observed when selecting ready- 
made garments? 

7. How may the study of textiles and clothing be a great 
help to the buyer? 

SOME TEXTILE TESTS 

Because textile materials are often adulterated, 
or made of poor material, it is quite necessary to 
know some simple tests that may be used for detect- 
ing inferior fabric. Often, by the use of one of 
these tests, one may avoid buying a fabric that will 
not wear well, that is not true to name, that will 
fade or launder badly, or that will pull and stretch 



140 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 




Cotton Fibers Magnified 



out of shape readily. The following tests will be 
of help and should be used whenever possible: 

A study of fibers 
under the microscope. 
The high-power mi- 
croscope is very 
useful in telling the 
quality of a fabric, 
because each fiber 
has a different ap- 
pearance under the 
microscope. By 
pulling apart the 
threads in a fabric 
and examining the 
fibers, one may tell 
whether the cloth is 
all-wool, whether it is all-linen or all-silk, and whether 
poor fibers have been used as substitute material. 
Under the microscope the fibers look as follows : 

Cotton — ribbon- 
like, tubular fibers 
which are more or 
less twisted. 

Flax — long, with 
cross lines at inter- 
vals, giving the ap- 
pearance of joints. 

Wool — a serrated 
surface which is 
easily detected. 
. Silk — no mark- 
ings of any kind, 
but the fibers appear Flax fibers magnified 




SEWING AND TEXTILES 



141 



as somewhat flattened and composed of two fila- 
ments. 

Burning tests. By burning threads pulled from 
materials one may often judge somewhat of their 
quality. Light the end of the thread and observe 
the odor given off and the manner in which it burns. 

Cotton and linen threads burn quickly, with a 
flame, and little odor 
is apparent. 

Silk and wool 
threads burn slowly, 
char, and smell like 
burned feathers. 

Weighted silk 
burns very slowly 
and, if very heavily 
weighted, the form 
of the silk remains 
after burning. 

Testing the strength 
of fabrics. A fabric 
is not strong and 
does not wear well when it is made of a poor 
fiber; of weak threads in the warp and strong 
threads in the woof, or vice versa ; or if woven 
poorly. Pull apart the material and test both warp 
and woof threads by pulling. Try tearing ma- 
terials, such as muslin, long cloth and gingham. 
If they tear with little effort the cloth is not so 
good as it should be. By holding a piece of 
cloth firmly with both hands and pressing down 
on the surface with both thumbs one may deter- 
mine whether the material is firmly woven. If 
the threads push apart easily the material will be 




Wool Fibers Magnified 



142 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 



apt to pull out at the seams or wherever there is 
any strain. 

Tests for shrinkage. A wash material may be 
tested for shrinkage by first carefully measuring the 
length and width of the sample, then washing in 
warm soapsuds, rinsing, drying and pressing ; after 
this the sample should again be measured and the 

size compared with 
its original size. 

Weighting in cloth. 
Cotton and linen 
materials may be 
tested for weighting 
in several ways : 

1. Tear the cloth 
and observe whether 
a fine powder flies. 
This powder is 
weighting. 

2. Scratch the 
surface of the cloth 
with the finger nail 

to find whether any of the weighting material can 
be removed. 

3. Rub the cloth between the hands and observe 
whether the weighting will rub out of the material, 
leaving it less stiff and not so heavy in appearance. 

4. Boil a sample in water until the sizing is re- 
moved, after which the true quality of the material 
may be observed. The time required for doing this 
will depend upon the amount of sizing present. 

5. Study the cloth by holding it up to the light 
and looking through it. Sometimes the sizing may 
easily be seen. 




Silk Fibers Magnified 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 143 

Silk materials are weighted by adding chemicals, 
and the tests above do not apply. A weighted 
silk may be burned, a square sample being used 
instead of a thread. If the silk is weighted it retains 
its shape after burning. 

Chemical tests. Chemical tests are the most 
dependable in determining the quality of cloth, 
but many of them require a considerable equipment 
and a knowledge of chemistry ; therefore, in testing 
materials at home, only a few tests can be used. 
The following are some very simple tests : 

To determine the amount of cotton in a wool sample. 
Place the sample in a porcelain dish, cover with a 
5 per cent solution of caustic potash (this can be 
purchased of the druggist), boil gently for fifteen 
minutes, remove what remains with a glass rod, rinse 
in clear water and dry. The part of the sample 
left is the cotton in the material, as the wool is 
destroyed by the caustic potash. If nothing is left 
of the sample after it has been boiled, it is all- 
wool. 

To determine the amount of cotton in a silk material. 
Follow directions given in the first test. The silk 
will be destroyed and the cotton will remain. 

To determine the amount of cotton in a linen material. 
Pull out the warp and woof threads on two sides 
of the sample, so that a deep fringe is formed. 
Place the fringed sample in a porcelain dish ; cover 
with a 50 per cent solution of caustic potash (ob- 
tained from the druggist) , and heat for two minutes ; 
remove sample with glass rod, dry between blotting- 
papers. The linen will be dark yellow or orange 
in color, and the cotton white or light yellow. 

This test is easily used on white flannel. 



144 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

To determine whether silk is "true" or artificial. 
Place the sample in nitric acid, remove and observe 
color; true silk turns yellow, artificial silk is not 
affected. 

LABORATORY EXERCISES 

making the wash dress (Continued) 

Textile study : Make as many of the tests described 
above as possible. 

Continue work on the dress. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

1. In what ways are fabrics adulterated? 

2. Describe the different fibers as they appear under the 
microscope. 

3. Name some types of materials in which weighting is some- 
times found. 

4. Why do we wish to avoid buying materials that are 
weighted ? 

5. What effect does weighting have on silk? 

6. In what two ways may a linen cloth be tested to find 
whether it is all-linen? 

7. Name some materials likely to be adulterated with 
cotton. 

8. In what ways should a gingham be tested before it is 
purchased for a dress? 

9. In what ways should long cloth and cambric be tested? 

10. How should a silk material be tested before purchasing? 
a wool material ? 

11. Does the price of a material fully indicate its value? 

12. Why is it worth while, whenever possible, to test mate- 
rials before purchasing? 

CHRISTMAS GIFTS 

Gifts that can be used, or that really give pleasure 
to the person receiving them, are the proper ones 
to select. Gifts that cannot be used or enjoyed by 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 145 

those receiving them show either bad taste or else 
a lack of thought on the part of the donor. A 
beautiful Christmas card may give more pleasure 
to some persons than any other gift that could be 
selected. It is not the cost, but its fitness, that 
makes the worth-while gift. 

Hand-made gifts are especially desirable, because 
they represent time and thought spent for the pur- 
pose of giving pleasure to those receiving the gifts. 
The following are simple gifts that can be made at 
school or at home by the members of the sewing- 
class. 

Cover-bag : Materials — three and one half yards wash 
material, 27 to 30 inches wide ; lawn, dimity, or similar 
materials are suitable. Thread to suit materials. 
Cotton embroidery floss. 

Straighten the ends of the material. Fold together 
so that the ends are even and the right side of the ma- 
terial is inside. Make a plain seam one fourth inch 
wide down each lengthwise edge. Turn the bag with 
right side out. Across each end make a hem one inch 
wide, and feather-stitch with the embroidery floss. 
Find the center point on the fold at the top of the bag. 
Cut out a round piece of the cloth at this center point, 
making the hole about the size of a dollar. Make a 
very narrow bias facing around the hole, following 
directions given for facing armhole of underslip. 
Feather-stitch the facing down to the material, using 
embroidery floss. This hole slips over the hook on the 
coat-hanger. 

Linen money-bag : This is a suitable gift for any one who 
travels. 

Materials — A piece of white linen, 8£ inches long 
and 4f inches wide. Thread to suit material. A piece 
of chamois five inches Ions and four inches wide. One 



146 SEWING AND TEXTILES 

yard of narrow linen tape. Two very small pearl 
buttons. 

Make a hemstitched hem one half inch wide across 
one narrow end, and a plain hem one half inch wide 
across the other end. Make plain hems one eighth 
inch wide down each side. Fold up the end finished 
with the plain hem to make a pocket 2| inches deep. 
Overhand the sides together, as in making the apron 
pocket. The hemstitched end laps over the top of the 
pocket. The tape should be cut in halves. Sew one 
piece at each side of the fold of the lap. This is done 
by making a tiny hem across the end of the tape and 
then overhanding the fold of the hem to the pocket. 
Fold the chamois together and overhand at the sides 
to form a pocket. This slips into the linen pocket, and 
can be removed when the linen pocket needs washing. 
To fasten down the lap of the pocket, sew the buttons 
to the linen pocket ; make two loops on the fold of the 
hemstitched hem that will fit over the buttons. To 
make a loop of thread, make three long stitches, one 
over the other, exactly on the fold ; blanket-stitch 
around these threads, making the stitches very close 
together. 
Stove-holders : Materials — Muslin strip, twenty-four 
inches long and six inches wide. Chambray strip 
12^ inches long and 6£ inches wide. White thread. 
A narrow linen tape, four inches in length. 

Fold the muslin strip to four thicknesses, so that it 
makes a six-inch square. Baste so that the edges are 
kept even. Turn down the edge of the chambray 
one fourth inch toward the wrong side. Baste down 
this fold. Cover the muslin square with this strip, 
placing the wrong side of the chambray next to muslin. 
Baste together the folded edges of the chambray on 
the three open sides of the holder, being careful to keep 
the folded edges even. This makes a holder six inches 
square. Stitch with machine, close to the folded edge, 



SEWING AND TEXTILES 147 

along all four sides of the holder. Baste together the 
layers of the holder so that they do not slip ; make a 
straight line of basting diagonally across the holder 
each way; this is to be a guide in stitching. Stitch 
with machine along these lines of basting. Place the 
two ends of the piece of tape together ; overhand the 
tape together along one side for three fourths inch, 
beginning at the cut ends; open flat. Turn under 
this cut end one eighth inch. Fasten the tape to the 
corner of the holder by hemming along the edges and 
across the end, leaving a one-inch loop beyond the edge 
of the holder, so that it may be hung up easily. 



INDEX 



Absorbent cotton, 22 
Absorbents for grease stains, 112 
Adulteration, in fabrics, tests for, 
143-144 

of cotton goods, 52-54 

of wool, 81 
Albatross, 89 
"All-linen" toweling, 67 
Alpaca, 80, 88 
Alpine Rose, muslin, 32 
Angora goat, 80 
Apron gingham, 18 
Apron, sewing-, 10, 11, 16-18, 21, 

23-28 
Artificial silk, 97 

Baby ribbon, 55 

Back-stitching, 95 

Band, for sewing-apron, 17 

"Bargains ", delusions in, 133 

Basting, 9 

Basting-stitches, 9 

Bathing, 114 

Bath towel, 68 

Batiste, embroidery on, 91 

Beadings, 47, 93 

Berkeley cambric, 33 

Bias casings, 57-59 

Blanket-stitch, 27 

on collar, 137-138 
Bleaching, agent, 111-113 

cotton, 29 

linen, 74 
Bobbin, 29 

Bolt, of cotton cloth, 30 
Breaking flax, 73, 74 
Brilliantine, 88 



Broadcloth, 88 
Budget, the, 101 
Burr-picker wool cleaner, 84 
Buttonhole scissors, 4 • 
Buttonholes, making, 25-27 
Buttons, sewing on, 25 

Calico, 40 
Cambric, 33 

embroidery on, 91 
Camel, 80 
Canton flannel, 41 
Carding, 29 

Care, of clothing, 106-109 
Cartwright, Edmund, inventor 

of cotton loom, 29 
Cashmere, 89 
Casings, 57 

Chain-stitch, on collar, 138 
Challie, 89 
Chambray, 19 
Cheesecloth, 41 
Cheviot, 88 
Chiffon, 65 
China silk, 65 
Chintz, 41 
Chloroform, 112 

Christmas gifts, making, 144-147 
Cloth, 15-16 

dyeing, 49-50 

examination of, 16 

making cotton, 28-30 
woolen, 83-85 
Cloth beam, 29 
Clothing, appropriate, 129-131 

care of, 106-109 

cost of, 101 



149 



150 



INDEX 



Clothing — Continued 

harmony in, 126 

healthful, 114-116 

ready-made, 134-136 

removing stains from, 110- 
113 

suitable amount of, 116 
Clothing Book, the, 102, 103- 

104, 128, 131-132, 136 
Cluny lace, 45 
Coffee, stains, 112 
Color, selection of proper, 121, 
122 

setting the, 107 
Commencement dress, 130 
Complexion, colors becoming to, 

121 
Consumers' League label, 136 
Consumer, some points for, 132- 

136 
Cord, crocheted, 57 
Corsets, 116 
Cotton, 15, 22-23, 28-30 

bales, 23 

bleaching, 29 

bolls, 22, 23 

carding, 29 

cloth, 15 

making of, 28-30 
testing for strength, 53 

countries producing, 22 

fiber, 22, 23, 140 

gathering, 23 

gin, 23 

growing, 22 

loom, 29 

picker machine, 28 

seed oil, 23 

sizing, 29 

starching, 30 

weighting, 53 

wide use of, 22 
Cotton, darning, 109 
Cotton floss, 16 
Cotton materials 



Cotton materials — Continued 

absorbent cotton, 22 

calico, 40 

cambric, 33 

Canton flannel, 41 

cheesecloth, 41 

chintz, 41 

crepe, 32, 33 

cretonne, 41 

damask, 76 

denim, 41 

dimity, 10, 12, 33 

dotted Swiss, 53-54 

flannelette, 41 

gun cotton, 22 

long cloth, 32 

mercerized cotton, 54 

muslin, 32 

nainsook, 33 

organdie, 41 

percale, 41 

pique, 42 

sateen, 42 

unbleached muslin, 32 
Cotton stockings, 97 
Cotton tape, 56 

Cotton in linen fabrics, tests for, 
143 

silk fabrics, tests for, 143 

wool fabrics, tests for, 143 
Cover-bags, 107, 145 
Covert cloth, 89 
Crash toweling, 67, 75 
Crepe, cotton, 32, 33 
Crepe de Chine, 65 
Cretonne, 41 
Crocheted cord, 57 
Cross-barred dimity, 33 



Damask, 75-76 

toweling, 67 
Darning cotton, 109 
Darning stockings, 109-110 
Denim, 41 



INDEX 



151 



Design, selection of proper, 126- 

127 
Dimity, 10-12 
Dotted Swiss, 53-54 
Double-hemstitching, 69 
Double-thread sewing-machine, 

37 
Dress, Commencement, 130 

the becoming, 126-128 

the wash, 120-144 
Dress linens, 77 
Dry-cleansing, 113 
Dyeing, 20, 49-50 

silk, 64 

wool, 85 

Embroidery, flouncings, 93 

how to join, 100 

on underwear, 90-93 
Emery-bag, 3, 6 
Entre deux insertion, 91 
Ether, 112 

Feather-stitching, 24 
Felting wool, 80 
Fibers, 15 

cotton, 140, 141 

flax, 140, 141 

silk, 140, 141 

wool, 140, 141 
Filet lace, 45 
Flannel, 89 
Flannelette, 41 
Flax, 70-74 

fibers, 140, 141 
Flaxseed, 70 
Fleece, 80 

Flocks, in wool yarns, 81 
Floss, cotton, 16 
Flouncings, 93 
French chalk, 112 
French gingham, 18 
French seam, 39 
Fruit, stains, 112 
Fuller's earth, 112 



Gasoline, 112 

Gathering, 13-14 
stitch, 13-14 

Gibbs, James A. E., inventor of 
the one-thread sewing- 
machine, 36 

Gifts, making of simple, 144-147 

Gingham, 11-12, 18-21 

Girls, clothing suitable for, 127, 
129-131 

Glass toweling, 67 

Grass stains, 112 

Grease stains, 112 

Guest towels, 68 

Gun cotton, 22 

Hackling flax, 74 

Hair, arrangement of, 131 

Hair-ribbons, 127-128 

Handkerchief linen, 76 

Hand-sewing, 36 

Hats, care of, 108 
selection of, 127 

Health, proper clothing necessary 
to, 114-116 

Hemmed patch, 123-124 

Hemstitching, double, 69 

Henrietta, 89 

Homespun, 88 

Hooks and eyes, 108 

Household linen, 76 

Howe, EliaSj inventor of sewing- 
machine, 36 

Huckaback toweling, 67, 75 

Hydro-extractor, wool drier, 84 

Implements for sewing, 3-9 

use of, 8-9 
Ink stains, 112 
Insertion, 91-93 
Irish lace, 45 

Jacquard, Joseph Marie, in- 
ventor of silk-loom har- 
ness, 64 



152 



INDEX 



Javelle water, 111 
Jewelry, avoidance of, 131 

Kimono nightgown, 34 
Kindergarten gingham, 19 
Kitchen, dress appropriate for, 

130 
Knitted stockings, 96-99 
underwear, 96-99 

Lace, 43-45 

beading, 47 

edging, 46-48 

insertion, 46-48 

machine-made, Cluny, 45 
filet, 45 
Irish, 45 
torchon, 45 
Valenciennes, 45 
Ladies' cloth, 88 
Lawn, 12 
Linen, 15, 70-77 

cambric, 76 

fabrics, test for cotton in, 143 

fiber, 70, 140, 141 

lawn, 76 

material for wash dress, 121 

money-bag, 145-146 

tape, 56 
Lisle-thread stockings, 97 
Llama, 80 

Lock-stitch sewing-machine, 37 
Long cloth, 32 
Lonsdale cambric, 33 
Loom, cotton, 29 

silk, 64 

Machine-sewing, 36 
Madras gingham, 19 
Materials, for nightgown, 34 

for towels, 67, 68 

for underslip, 81, 82 

for underwear, 32-33 

purchase of, 133-136 
Measuring for sewing-apron, 16 



Melton, 89 

Mercerized cotton, 54 

Merino wool, 80 

Microscope, fibers under the, 140 

use of the, 23 
Mohair, 88 
Moire silk, 64 
Money-bag, linen, 145-146 
Mungo, in wool, 81 
Muslin, 32 

unbleached, 32 

Nainsook, embroidery on, 91 
Nap, 15 
Napkins, 76 
Napping wool, 85 
Needle, 3, 4-5 

care of, 5 

sizes used in plain sewing, 5 

tape, 57 

use of coarse, 5 
Nightgown, 34, 42-43, 46, 48, 

51-52, 54, 57-59, 65 
Noils, in wool yarns, 81 

Oil stains, 112 
Organdie, 41 

"Organzine," silk warp, 64 
Overhanding, 14 
Overhand patch, 125 
Oxalic acid, 111 

Paint stains, 112, 113 
Patch, hemmed, 123-124 

overhand, 125 
"Pattern-cloth ", table linen, 76 
Percale, 41 

Personal appearance, in work, 5 
Picker, cotton machine, 28 
Picot, 48 
Pin-cushion, 3, 6 
Pins, 3, 6 
Pique, 42 
Placket, continuous, 95 

in underslip, 94-96 



INDEX 



153 



Pocket, for sewing-apron, 31 
Pongee, 65 

Pressing garments, 107-108 
Pure Food Law, 132 

Quilt, patchwork, 36 

Ready-made garments, 103 

selection of, 134-136 
Reeling silk, 61-62 
Retting flax, 72 
Ribbon, 55-57 
Rippling flax, 71 
Rubbers, care of, 108 
Ruffle, on underslip, 82, 104 
Running-stitches, 9-10 
Russian crash, 75 

"Sampler", 36 

Sateen, 42 

Satin, 65 

Scallops, in embroidery, 91 

on edge of collar, 139 
School, dress appropriate for, 130 
Scissors, 3, 8 

buttonhole, 4 

how to hold, 8 
Scotch gingham, 19 
Scouring wool, 84 
Scutching flax, 73, 74 
Seam, 38-40 
Selvedge, 15 
Serge, 88 
Sewing, care of work, 6 

implements for, 3-9 

position when, 5 

use of coarse thread for, 5 
Sewing-apron, 10-11, 30-31, 35 

making the, 16-18, 21, 23-28 

materials for, 10-11, 16 
Sewing-basket, 3 

implements for, 3-9 

preferable to bag or box, 3 
Sewing-machine, 36^40 
Shearing, 80 



Shears, 3-4 
Sheep, 80 
Sheeting, 76 
Shoddy, in wool, 81 
Shoe laces, 108 
Shoes, 115 

care of, 108 
Shuttle, 29 
Silk, 15 
cloth, 15 
chiffon, 65 
China, 65 
crepe de Chine, 65 
pongee, 65 
satin, 65 
taffeta, 65 
velvet, 65 
fabric, test for cotton in, 
143 
test for "true" or artificial, 
143-144 
fibers, 140-141 
looms, 64 
making of, 59-65 
raising, 59-60 
stockings, 97 
Silkworms, 60-61 
Singer, Isaac M., improves sew- 
ing-machine, 36 
Single-thread sewing-machine, 37 
Sizing, cotton, 29 

too much not desirable, 120 
Slender figure, pattern suitable 

for, 127 
Snap fasteners, 108 
Solvents for stains, 112 
Spinning, 16 
Stains in clothing, to remove, 

110-113 
Starch, 112 
Stitches, back, 95 
basting, 9 

blanket, 27, 137-138 
chain, 138 
cross, 77 



154 



INDEX 



Stitches — Continued 

feather, 24-25 

gathering, 13-14 

hemming, 12-13 

machine, double-thread or lock- 
stitch, 37 

overhanding, 14 

running, 9-10 

single-thread or chain-stitch, 
37 
Stocking, darning a, 109-110 
Stockings, 115 

artificial silk, 97 

cotton, 97 

knitted, 96-99 

lisle, 97 

silk, 97 

woolen, 97 
Stout figure, colors suitable for, 
121, 122 

patterns suitable for, 127 
Stove-holders, 146-147 
Street coat, choice of, 126 
Strength, tests for, 141 
Swiss, embroidery on, 91 

Table-linen, 75-76 
Taffeta, 65 
Talcum powder, 112 
Tape, cotton and linen, 56 
Tape-line, 3, 6, 8 
Tape-needle, 57 
Tea, stains, 112 
Tearing tests, 141 
Tests, adulteration, 143 

burning, 141 

chemical, 143 

for textiles, 139-144 

for wash-dress material, 120 

shrinkage, 142 

strength, 141 

under microscope, 140 

weighting, 142-143 
Textile Book, 12, 21, 34, 50, 65, 
75, 77, 89, 90, 93 



Textiles, tests for, 139-144 
Thimble, 3, 7, 9 
Thread, 3, 5, 8, 22 
Torchon lace, 45 
Towel, 67-68 

making the, 68-69, 72, 77- 
79 
Toweling, 67-68, 75 

"union", 67 
"Tram", silk woof, 64 
Trimming, selection of, 130 
Turkish towel, 68 
Tweed, 88 

Unbleached muslin, 32 
Underclothing, 114-115 
Underslip, making the, 81-82, 
86-87, 93-96, 100, 103- 
106, 116-119 
Underwear, cotton used for, 32- 
33 

embroidery on, 90-93 

knitted, 96-99 

laces for, 45 

materials for, 97 

ribbons for, 55-57 

tapes for, 56, 57 

washing woolen, 115 
Union suits, 99, 114 
"Union toweling", 67 

Valenciennes lace, 45 

Velvet, 65 

Voile, insertion, 91 

Waistbands, 116 
Warp, 15 

Wash dress, making the, 128- 
129, 137-139 

materials for, 120-121 

planning the, 122-123 

selection of, 120-122 
Washing, woolen underwear, 115 
Weaving, 16 
Weaving-card, 30-31 



INDEX 



155 



Weighting, cotton cloth, 53 

silk, 64 

tests for, 142-143 
Whitney, Eli, inventor of cotton 

gin, 23 
Wilson, Allan B., improves sew- 
ing-machine, 36 
Woof, 15 
Wool, 15, 80-90 

fiber, 80, 140 

stockings, 97 

tests for cotton in, 143 
Woolen cloth, 15 
Woolen material, albatross, 89 

alpaca, 88 

brilliantine, 88 

broadcloth, 88 

cashmere, 89 

challie, 89 

cheviot, 88 



Woolen material — Continued 

covert cloth, 89 

flannel, 89 

Henrietta, 89 

homespun, 88 

ladies' cloth, 88 

melton, 89 

mohair, 88 

serge, 88 

tweed, 88 
Woolen underwear, washing, 115 
Woolen yarn, 84, 85 
Worsted yarn, 84, 85 

Yarn, cotton, 29 

woolen, 84, 85 

worsted, 84, 85 
Yolk, oil from wool fiber, 83 

Zephyr Gingham, 19 



